Murder-suicide investigated

Manager of Melbourne sports store killed wife, 2 children, himself, sheriff says BY KEYONNA SUMMERS FLORIDA TODAY Seminole County Sheriff's investigators today are seeking clues into what led a manager at Dick's Sporting Goods in Melbourne to fatally shoot his wife and two children before killing himself inside his Heathrow home. A cleaning lady who showed up just after 11:30 a.m. Monday at 41-year-old John D. Wood's home called police when she spotted Wood's body just inside the entrance, sheriff's spokesman Jordan Broderick said. That's when authorities also found the bodies of Cynthia Wood, 40, Aubrey Wood, 12 and Dillan Wood, 10, inside, he said. Lt. Don Rufo said authorities think the family was last seen early Friday, possibly around lunchtime. "It appears, as of now, to be a murder-suicide," Broderick said, adding that victim advocates from the sheriff's office would be offering grief counseling throughout the week to neighbors, especially children. "We've interviewed neighbors, and they're very upset as one might expect. It appears a lot of people knew this family." Broderick said Wood did not leave behind a suicide note. But authorities think financial strife may have been the motive behind the killings, Broderick said. "It's a huge tragedy. There's no other way to describe it," Seminole County Sheriff Don Eslinger told Orlando Sentinel. Dick's Sporting Goods executive vice president Jeff Hennion confirmed that Wood was a manager at the Melbourne store for six months, and was an active employee as of Friday. However, a neighbor told the Orlando Sentinel that Wood's wife recently lost her job. Wood's nearly 3,000-square-foot home, located inside an upscale gated community just north of Lake Mary, was valued at almost $330,000, the paper reported. Orlando Sentinel also reported that Wood filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy protection in 2004, and the filing was converted to Chapter 7 in 2007. The most recent activity on their case shows they were notified last month about an upcoming status hearing. That hearing was set for 3 p.m. Aug. 11 in Orlando. Orlando Sentinel contributed to this report. Contact Summers at 242-3642 orksummers@floridatoday.com.