LAKELAND, Fla. – Florida deputies have arrested a Lakeland woman who claimed she accidentally stabbed her husband to death after she slipped on dog poop.
Rachel Fidanian, 38, faces a charge of second-degree murder after a monthslong investigation.
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Brian Bruchey, a spokesman for the Polk County Sheriff's Office, said 40-year-old Bryant Fidanian died on June 25.
Bruchey said Rachel Fidanian initially told deputies that she was cutting a pizza with a kitchen knife when her dog defecated on itself. She told deputies that she kept the knife in her hand as she tried to clean up the dog but slipped and fell into her husband.
"The suspect made a lot of excuses, but none of them made sense," Sheriff Grady Judd said. “Our detectives did a thorough investigation. In the end, they determined this was an intentional act of domestic violence."
Deputies said Rachel Fidanian stabbed her husband in the ribs, severing his pulmonary artery. Paramedics transported him to Lakeland Regional Health, where he died of his injuries.
Bruchey said deputies found Fidanian's initial version of events implausible, and he said she changed her story several times. Deputies also did not find any feces or urine in the area described by Rachel Fidanian, the arrest report said. Deputies said she was later unable to pick up her dog, casting further doubt on her story.
Rachel Fidanian described her relationship as "wonderful," but neighbors told police the couple fought often, the report said.