Tracey Willetts, 58, is believed to have fatally shot her husband, Stephen Willetts, 65, before turning the gun on herself inside their home in Wilmington, North Carolina, on Thursday morning, just a day after the couple's 40th wedding anniversary.
Police said evidence suggests Tracey shot Stephen in the garage before killing herself. Investigators said they are still searching for a motive.
A Family Torn by Two Losses
Former family friend Tori Racca told the Daily Mail that Tracey had been left bereft by the deaths of her only two children, Zack and Colby, who died within a year of each other in 2013 and 2014.
Zack died by suicide at age 23, soon after returning from deployment to Japan and Afghanistan with the National Guard. Colby died months later at age 21, following a battle with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Racca said the family had known for years that Colby "was going to die," but it was Zack's death that left his parents reeling and searching for answers. "He knew his brother was going to die, so they thought, why would he do that to them?" Racca said. "[Tracey] was devastated."
How Police Discovered the Deaths
The deaths of Tracey and Stephen were discovered after a smartwatch one of them was wearing detected a fall and called 911. Officers gained entry through the garage door and found the couple, who were both pronounced dead at the scene.
Racca said she first saw news of the deaths in their community without knowing who the victims were, and said she "never would have thought" it was the loving couple she once knew. She had grown apart from the couple in recent years but was once very close with Tracey, since her own son was Zack's best friend and "like another son" to her.
Recalling Tracey as a "great person" and loving mother back when her sons were alive, Racca said she is stunned that the woman she once knew could allegedly be a killer. "She was not some crazy lunatic," she insisted. "She was just a mom with a really sad story."
Doubts About Zack's Suicide
Racca said Zack's suicide in 2013 upended the family and left Tracey searching for answers, because she "didn't believe" her son could take his own life. Tracey told people she "believed something else happened."
According to Racca, Tracey said a suicide note apparently left by Zack "didn't match his handwriting," and pointed out that he had ordered a pizza beforehand, which convinced her he was not planning to end his life. "[The suicide note] was also very vague and didn't explain anything, and it didn't say 'I love you' or anything like that," Racca explained.
Racca also recalled the callous way North Carolina authorities handled the aftermath of Zack's death, saying officers dumped his blood-soaked mattress on the street and left the family to clean it up. "He had his feet hanging off the side of the bed… they made her clean it up. It really affected them," she said.
Another Death in 2022
Racca said her ex-boyfriend, who had become "like a second son" to the Willetts after their sons' deaths, also died by suicide in 2022. "I tried to call around [after the murder-suicide] but there was nobody left close to them… they're all dead," she said.
Family and Neighbors Remember the Couple
Following the deaths, Tracey's second cousin, Fuller Royal, wrote on social media that he also believed the loss of their sons had deeply affected the couple. "I can't begin to imagine how much that hurt and what they went through," Royal wrote. "I pray they are reunited with their boys and that everyone is whole, safe and at peace."
Royal described Stephen as a "lifelong friend" who "helped a lot of people" during his work as an EMT. A former close friend of the family said the Willetts' home had been known as the "hangout spot" for their friend group, and that no one had any inclination the family would be involved in such a tragedy.
Neighbor Wyatt Heartline remembered Stephen as someone who "was always down to have a conversation." "I'm a runner and he'd often ask me how my progress is going or walking our dogs and just a brief 'hello,'" he told WECT. "He was consistent and one of the friendliest people I've met around here. The neighborhood is thoroughly shocked."
Another neighbor, Andy Johnson, said he regularly saw Stephen walking his dog. "He's retired Army," Johnson said. "I was in the Army myself, so we spent a lot of time talking in the afternoons and stuff as he came by."
A friend of Tracey's told WWAY that she was someone who always wanted to do the right thing for people in her community.
The couple was also well known in the Wrightsville Beach paddleboarding community. Jared Covington, owner of Wrightsville SUP, said he had known them for more than a decade. "We became like family, just sharing a love for being outside on the water, paddleboarding," Covington said. He remembered the couple as energetic, outgoing and devoted to one another.
