Witness: Man Kills Wife, Says ‘I Love You' Before Suicide

MONESSEN, Pa.,None — Police said marital troubles apparently led a man to shoot his wife and a wheelchair-bound man outside a high-rise complex for the elderly and disabled in Monessen, before fatally shooting himself.

Monessen police Chief Mark Gibson said the gunman was Vladimir Von Fischer, 42. Gibson said the man shot his wife, Maedee Von Fischer, 44, and her friend, Nicholas Mascetta, 44, outside Westgate Manor at about 9 p.m. Sunday.

The chief said the Von Fischers lived along Reed Avenue a short distance from the complex and had been having marital troubles. One person witnessed the shooting in a picnic-type pavilion next to the high-rise, though other people were outside in the general vicinity.

"(A witness saw) a male come down over the hillside from the top street," said Gibson. "Came down near the pavilion, at which time he pulled out a pistol from his waist band at which time he pointed the pistol at his wife and began shooting."

"I just heard six shots," said Westgate resident Frank Wright. "Bam. Bam. Bam."

Gibson said Mascetta was practically defenseless.

"He was actually in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the waist down," said Gibson.

Channel 11's Dave Bondy spoke with a friend of Mascetta's.

"The man in the wheelchair is a friend of mine, went to high school with him, Nick Mascetta. [It's] bad enough, you know, he was immobile. He had no chance," said Aaron Payne.

Payne said Mascetta was paralyzed from the waist down due to a car accident one year ago.

A man who witnessed the killings said after the gunman shot and killed his wife, he said, "I love you," before turning the gun on himself.

Authorities said there were 25 to 30 other people around who witnessed the shooting and that the man fired at least 11 rounds. No other injuries were reported.

"For the past few months they have had marital problems and the one family member stated that the mother had talked about petitioning for a divorce," said Gibson.

Family members told police the couple had problems in this past but they never expected such a violent end. However, one worker at Westgate told Channel 11 News he feared the worst.

"It was just a bad, bad tragedy that didn't have to happen," said Leroy Bright, head of maintenance at Westgate. "We tried in a lot of ways to prevent something like this. She wasn't supposed to be allowed in the building."

The shooting, police said, was the first homicide in Monessen since 2002.

• E-Mail Newsletter: Get The Latest News Sent To Your E-Mail! • Mobile: Get WPXI Headlines On Your Phone, iPhone, More • RSS: Add Us To Your Page!

WPXI