Two Ft. Ann residents have been arrested in connection with the death of an elderly woman.
Kevin Gonyea, 50, has been charged with murder after deputies say he strangled his 95-year-old grandmother, Leona Twiss, to death on Sunday night. Gonyea's wife, Melissa, has also been arrested on charges that she helped cover up the killing.
Deputies say Leona Twiss's death was not initially considered suspicious, until evidence found during the autopsy revealed that she had been choked to death.
"The autopsy showed she was strangled," said Capt. Tony LeClaire. He tells the Post-Star that the Gonyeas were the only other people in the house. In addition, the paper quotes LeClaire as saying this may have been a mercy killing, as Twiss suffered from dementia and was supposed to go into a nursing home.
The couple, who came to Washington County from Florida last year to care for Leona Twiss and her late husband, Walter, was arraigned this morning in Kingsbury.
Both are behind bars pending further court action.
photos: Washington County Sheriff's Office