CHESAPEAKE, Va. — The man accused of killing his estranged wife in Chesapeake is behind bars in Currituck County.
Ben Matthew Wynkoop is facing a first-degree murder charge after police say he shot and killed Kathryn Dean inside her Chesapeake home on Monday.
Court documents show Dean filed a protective order against Wynkoop that a judge issued on March 23, almost two weeks before she died. The protective order would have lasted for a year.
According to court documents, the order states: Wynkoop is prohibited from having contact with Dean, must stay away from Dean's home, and must get rid of any guns by either surrendering them to police, selling them, or transferring them to another person.
Neighbors on Willow Oak Drive said Dean’s death comes as a shock.
“You never know what your neighbor is going to do until the moment happens," Shelton Harrell said.
Investigators said they got a call about a domestic dispute at Dean's Willow Oak Drive home. When they got there, they found her dead, inside.
Police immediately initiated a tactical situation and members of the SWAT team cleared the house.
“I was definitely shocked when I came home from school," Harrell said. "Just drove right by there and saw 20 cop cars.”
Another neighbor, Margaret Ahlert, was also home when police converged on the scene.
"The cops and the SWAT team and everything," Ahlert said. "I stayed inside. We couldn’t come out.”
Chesapeake police launched a manhunt for Wynkoop. Detectives found him later that day in Currituck County, North Carolina. Currituck deputies took him into custody around 5 p.m.
“It’s sad," Ahlert said. "You only see this stuff on TV. You don’t see it down the block.”
Family members of Dean did not want to appear on camera but confirm she was a mother and her children are grieving her loss.
“I’ve met her a couple of times. I know her kids," Ahlert said. "It’s sad.”
Chesapeake police said Wynkoop is "in the process" of being extradited to Chesapeake.