Gastonia man, 71, charged with first-degree murder after wife shot to death

GASTONIA, N.C. — A Gaston County man is behind bars after police said he shot his wife to death Thursday morning inside their home.

Officers were called just before 7 a.m. to a house on Willow Pond Road in Gastonia in reference to a shooting. When they got to the home, police said they found 72-year-old Judy Helms, who had been shot.

She was taken to the hospital but did not survive.

Her husband, 71-year-old Rickey Holdsclaw, was still at the scene and was arrested. He has been charged with first-degree murder in his wife’s death.

Police have not released any other information about the crime or said what may have led to the shooting.

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