INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (NEWSnet/AP) — A Kansas City-area man charged with killing his hospitalized wife told police he couldn’t take care of her or afford her medical bills, court records say.

Ronnie Wiggs made his first appearance Monday on a second-degree murder charge and was referred to the public defender’s office. A hearing was set for Thursday to review his $250,000 bond.

His wife was getting a new port for her dialysis May 3 when staff at Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence called a “code blue,” because she was unresponsive.

Staff managed to get her pulse back, but determined she was brain-dead, according to the probable cause statement. She died May 4.

After the attack, Wiggs left the hospital. But the statement said the woman’s son took Wiggs back to see her and he confessed. Staff heard him say, “I did it, I killed her, I choked her,” according to the statement.

He then was arrested and told a detective he covered his wife’s nose and mouth to keep her from screaming, the statement said. He said he couldn’t handle the caregiving and bills.

Follow NEWSnet on Facebook and X platform to get our headlines in your social feeds.

Copyright 2024 NEWSnet and The Associated Press. All rights reserved.