Hoke sheriff: Bragg soldier killed wife, himself

Tragedy strikes

A Fort Bragg soldier who returned from a deployment to Iraq just weeks ago shot and killed his wife before turning the gun on himself over the weekend, according to the Hoke County Sheriff's Office.

Staff Sgt. Seth R. Andrews, 24, of Moberly, Mo., shot his wife, Hillary L. Andrews, at their home in the 100 block of Patolly Place before killing himself, authorities said.

Deputies were called to the home about midnight on Saturday and arrived to find the two bodies inside the home.

Nobody had witnessed the shooting, but a neighbor passing by the home saw that the front door was open, Sheriff Hubert Peterkin said. The bodies were visible inside, he said.

It appeared that the pair had died minutes before their bodies were discovered, he said.

Investigators determined that Seth Andrews had shot his wife in the upper body with a .30-06 rifle before he fatally shot himself, he said. There were no signs of a struggle leading up to the shooting, he said.

"We don't know what the motives are," Peterkin said. "A lot of times we get these and we don't know why, but there evidently had to be something wrong. We don't know."

Investigators had not had reports that the couple was fighting, but the investigation was continuing, Peterkin said. Army officials had reported Seth Andrews had returned from Afghanistan after Thanksgiving, he said.

"All we know is that he just got back from (Iraq) and we don't know what happened from that point on," he said. "It's unfortunate this happened, especially at this time of year."

The 82 Airborne Division identified the paratrooper as a mortarman with the 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team.

He joined the Army in June 2005 and trained at Fort Benning, Ga., before being stationed at Fort Bragg in 2009. He deployed to Haiti from January 2010 to March 2010 and Afghanistan from April 2010 to August 2010.

Most recently, he deployed to Iraq as part of Operation New Dawn from June 2011 to November 2011, according to the 82nd.

Hillary Andrews' Facebook page says she is from Enterprise, Ala., and married Seth Andrews on April 16, 2010. She had attended college at Fayetteville Technical Community College, her page says.

Her wall portrays a happy woman who loved her friends and family and who was excited to see her husband return on Nov. 28. She posted several photos and a video of his unit marching at green ramp after the deployment.

"And I say Hell yea, Hell yea- Hell yea!" she wrote.

Since the shooting, her wall has been consumed by posts from family and friends grieving over her death. Many express disbelief about what happened and that Hillary Andrews is gone forever.

"I am going to miss you so much," wrote her father, William Morgan, who was also an Army soldier. "You've been a ray of light that not even death will extinguish. I will always love you and now miss you even more. You will be missed by so many people. Your precious and bubbly smile will be forever on my mind. I'm so sorry I let you down babygirl, I should have been there to protect you. I can promise you one thing, you will never be forgotten."