Lee Anne Pirus, 50, died on September 16, 2017, in Madison, Wisconsin. An autopsy found a gunshot wound to the head that investigators determined was not consistent with suicide. Her husband, Steven Pirus, initially gave conflicting accounts, telling authorities she had killed herself and that he had tried to cover it up by causing an explosion in their home.

Investigators later established that Steven Pirus had fatally shot Lee Anne weeks before an intentionally caused explosion. He admitted to the killing and to loosening the gas connection to a clothes dryer and extinguishing the water heater pilot light; the resulting blast destroyed the home, killed four of the couple’s five pets, and damaged neighboring houses. He was arrested and charged with first-degree intentional homicide, arson, and reckless endangerment.

At trial Steven Pirus pleaded guilty to first-degree intentional homicide. Other charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement, though the judge could consider them when deciding parole eligibility. He was sentenced to life with parole possible after at least 20 years. Did anyone who knew Lee Anne or the neighborhood in Madison around 2017 notice anything that could shed more light on the events leading up to her death?