Sacramento County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a 67-year-old man on a murder charge after his girlfriend was found dead inside a South Sacramento home late Friday night, in a case that began as a medical aid call before turning into a homicide investigation. The woman, 56, was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to a news release from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office
, deputies responded to a residence in the 4900 block of El Paraiso Avenue at about 11 p.m. Friday at the request of Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District personnel. Fire crews had initially gone to the home for a medical aid call after Wendell Celestine reported finding his girlfriend unconscious, the sheriff's office said.
Celestine and the victim had previously been married and divorced, but had rekindled their relationship and were dating again at the time of her death, per the release. When fire personnel arrived, they reportedly observed signs of trauma to the victim along with broken glass and damaged furniture inside the residence — details the sheriff's office said were consistent with a possible physical altercation.
Deputies Detain Boyfriend as Homicide Unit Takes Over
Deputies arrived and detained Celestine at the scene. Homicide detectives and crime scene investigators then took over the investigation, and based on their findings, Celestine was arrested and booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on a charge of murder. He is currently ineligible for bail, the sheriff's office said.
The Sacramento County Coroner's Office is expected to release the victim's identity in accordance with its own protocols, a step that had not yet occurred as of the sheriff's announcement. The agency is led by Sheriff Jim Cooper.
A Rare Homicide in a County With Falling Numbers
The case adds to what has otherwise been a historically quiet year for homicides in Sacramento County. The sheriff's office investigated just 18 homicide deaths in 2025, down 54% from 37 the year before — the fewest the agency has recorded since the 1980s, according to sacbee.com. The sheriff's office also reported no gang-related homicides last year.
Countywide, including the city of Sacramento, 70 homicide victims were tallied in 2025, the same reporting found. Forty-three of those deaths involved gunshot wounds, while 11 involved blunt-force trauma and 10 involved stabbings. The Sacramento Police Department, which polices a separate jurisdiction within the county, recorded 36 homicide deaths last year, a 20% drop from 45 in 2024, per the same account.
Open Questions Remain in the Investigation
Sheriff's officials have not released further details about what led to the alleged altercation inside the home, and the exact cause of the victim's death had not been disclosed as of the release. Anyone with information was directed to the sheriff's non-emergency line at 916-874-5115, while emergencies should be reported by calling 911.
