Westport, MA: Westport man kills self after domestic dispute

By Staff reports
Herald News
Posted May 24, 2010 @ 06:27 PM
WESTPORT —
A 47-year-old man killed himself in his Mouse Mill Road home Friday night after allegedly threatening his wife with a gun and telling her he would set the house on fire if she called the police.

Police said the man, Roger Sartini III, had also threatened his wife with a gun two days earlier but the woman did not call the police, according to Westport police.

“This incident highlights the dangers involved in domestic violence cases, and our heartfelt thoughts are with the victim who managed to survive the argument,” said police spokesman Detective Jeff Majewski. “She was fortunate that she was able to escape and hide outside until the police arrived.”

The woman, who was hiding outside the house, called police at around 10 p.m. to report that her husband was threatening her with a gun, and that he said he would set the house on fire and injure himself if she called police. Only seconds after officers climbed a gate to approach a back door, they heard a gunshot.

Officers tried using a defibrillator and called the fire department for help resuscitating Sartini. He was found in an upstairs bedroom, Majewski said.
According to public police logs, Westport officers had responded to the couple’s home for domestic disturbances in the past. “Westport police are familiar with that address,” Majewski said.