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Husband, Wife Found Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide

BENTON TOWNSHIP — The deaths of a husband and wife in Columbia County appear to be a murder-suicide. State police say Mark and Jennifer Kaufman were found...
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BENTON TOWNSHIP -- The deaths of a husband and wife in Columbia County appear to be a murder-suicide.

State police say Mark and Jennifer Kaufman were found Thursday with gunshot wounds inside their home tucked back in the woods off Frosty Hollow Road in Benton Township.

Family members say the couple was last seen two weeks ago.

Troopers say it appears Mark Kaufman killed his wife, then himself.

People living in the quiet, rural community in Columbia County were stunned to learn that a murder-suicide took place in their neighborhood.

“Extremely sad, a murder-suicide, yeah I had no idea,” said neighbor Brenda Yaple. “It is very shocking, yeah. It's completely caught me off guard. We take walks. We walk back that way.”

Troopers went to the home of Mark Kauffman, 58, and his wife, Jennifer Kauffman, 49, Thursday afternoon after relatives called police saying they hadn't heard from the couple in about two weeks.

“A little disturbing,” said neighbor Jason Roeder.

“It never comes down to that. There's always choices. You can leave. You never have to go to those situations,” said Jason’s wife, Jessica Roeder.  “If he doesn't like me, go. Kill me? No. There's choices to make.”

“She's right, you have choices. If there's a problem then separate,” said Jason.

Yaple says she doesn't know the couple, but she has relatives who live on their street.

Despite what happened, Yaple doesn't feel any of them were in danger.

“It sounds to me like it was sort of an in-house thing, more like a domestic dispute obviously,” said Yaple.

Autopsies were done on the couple on Friday at Lehigh Valley Hospital.

Jennifer Kauffman death was ruled a homicide, and Mark’s was ruled suicide.

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