Casepin
Back to cases

Case file

Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide

SOLVED2007Benoit family residence, Fayetteville, Georgia3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · domestic violence · crimes against children · suicide — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

Between June 22 and June 24, 2007, Chris Benoit, a 40-year-old Canadian professional wrestler employed by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), killed his wife Nancy Benoit and their seven-year-old son Daniel before taking his own life at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia, about 22 miles south of Atlanta. According to the police report and autopsy findings, Nancy was killed first, on the night of June 22, dying of asphyxiation. Her limbs had been bound with coaxial cables and duct tape, and injuries indicated Benoit pressed a knee into her back while pulling a cord around her neck. Daniel was suffocated in his bedroom on the morning of June 23; toxicology found he had been sedated with Xanax and was likely unconscious at the time. Bibles were placed near both bodies. On the evening of June 24, Benoit hanged himself in his home weight room using a lat pulldown machine.

In the days between the killings and the discovery of the bodies, Benoit exchanged calls and text messages with WWE colleagues, including wrestler Chavo Guerrero and referee Scott Armstrong, offering shifting explanations for his and his family's absence from scheduled events, including claims of food poisoning. Benoit failed to appear for a WWE pay-per-view event on June 24. WWE requested a welfare check, and Fayetteville police discovered the three bodies on June 25, 2007, subsequently classifying the home as a "major crime scene."

Toxicology results presented by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation found therapeutic (not abuse-level) drug findings in Nancy's system, alcohol at a level of 0.184, and Xanax in Daniel's system. Chris Benoit tested negative for blood alcohol but had elevated levels of testosterone cypionate and no evidence of GHB despite speculation. Various explanations for Benoit's actions have been publicly proposed, including postmortem findings of severe chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in his brain examined by neurosurgeon Julian Bailes, as well as hypotheses involving steroid use, alcohol, and marital difficulties; WWE publicly disputed the "roid rage" hypothesis, citing evidence of premeditation. Nancy had filed for divorce from Benoit in May 2003 alleging domestic abuse, later withdrawing the filing.

The case prompted a United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform inquiry into WWE's wellness policy and steroid use in professional wrestling, though Congress took no formal action against WWE. Benoit's physician, Phil Astin, was separately charged in February 2008 with overprescribing medication in a case not connected to Benoit, later pleading guilty to 175 counts and receiving a ten-year prison sentence. WWE removed most references to Benoit from its media platforms following the killings. Nancy and Daniel were memorialized in Daytona Beach, Florida, in July 2007; Benoit was cremated following a private service in Alberta, Canada, in August 2007.

Key facts

Victims
Nancy Benoit, Daniel Benoit
Date
2007
Location
Benoit family residence, Fayetteville, Georgia
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2000-02-25

    Daniel Christopher Benoit is born.

  2. 2003-05

    Nancy Benoit files for divorce from Chris Benoit, alleging domestic abuse.

  3. 2007-06-22

    Chris Benoit kills his wife Nancy in the bonus room of their Fayetteville, Georgia home; she dies of asphyxiation.

  4. 2007-06-23

    Chris Benoit kills his son Daniel, who is suffocated in his bedroom while sedated.

  5. 2007-06-23

    Benoit exchanges calls with wrestler Chavo Guerrero, offering explanations for the family's absence from a scheduled event in Beaumont, Texas.

  6. 2007-06-24

    Text messages are sent from Chris's and Nancy's cellphones to WWE co-workers between 3:51 a.m. and 3:58 a.m.

  7. 2007-06-24

    Benoit fails to appear at the Vengeance: Night of Champions pay-per-view event in Houston.

  8. 2007-06-24

    Chris Benoit hangs himself in his home weight room using a lat pulldown machine.

  9. 2007-06-25

    Fayetteville police discover the three bodies after a welfare check requested by WWE; the home is declared a major crime scene.

  10. 2007-06-28

    Benoit's father agrees to have his son's brain examined for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

  11. 2007-07-14

    A memorial for Nancy and Daniel Benoit takes place in Daytona Beach, Florida.

  12. 2007-07-17

    The Georgia Bureau of Investigation holds a press conference announcing toxicology results.

  13. 2007-08-06

    A private memorial service for Chris Benoit is held in Ardrossan, Alberta.

  14. 2007-09-05

    Neurosurgeon Julian Bailes announces findings of Benoit's postmortem brain examination in New York City.

  15. 2008-02

    Phil Astin, Benoit's physician, is charged with overprescribing medication in a case unrelated to Benoit.

  16. 2009-01-29

    Astin pleads guilty to 175 counts of illegally prescribing drugs and is sentenced to ten years in prison.

  17. 2018-09

    A federal judge dismisses a class-action lawsuit filed by former wrestlers against WWE over CTE risks.

  18. 2020-09

    The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejects an appeal in the CTE lawsuit.

  19. 2021-04

    The United States Supreme Court declines to hear the CTE-related case against WWE.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Nancy Benoit

    VICTIM

    Killed by asphyxiation on June 22, 2007, at the family home in Fayetteville, Georgia.

    citation on file

  • Phil Astin

    CONVICTED

    Benoit's physician; pleaded guilty to 175 counts of illegally prescribing drugs (in a matter unrelated to Benoit) and was sentenced to ten years in prison.

    citation on file

  • Chris Benoit

    CONVICTED

    Identified by law enforcement as having killed his wife and son before dying by suicide on June 24, 2007; no criminal prosecution occurred due to his death.

    citation on file

  • Daniel Benoit

    VICTIM

    Seven-year-old son, sedated and killed by suffocation on June 23, 2007.

    citation on file

Places

Benoit family residence, Fayetteville, Georgia

33.3935, -84.5207

View on the map

Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Over June 22–24, 2007, professional wrestler Chris Benoit murdered his wife Nancy and their seven-year-old son Daniel before hanging himself at their home in Fayetteville, Georgia.
Where did the murder happen?
Benoit family residence, Fayetteville, Georgia.
Who was convicted?
Phil Astin (Benoit's physician; pleaded guilty to 175 counts of illegally prescribing drugs (in a matter unrelated to Benoit) and was sentenced to ten years in prison.) and Chris Benoit (Identified by law enforcement as having killed his wife and son before dying by suicide on June 24, 2007; no criminal prosecution occurred due to his death.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. Chris Benoit double-murder and suicidewikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage — ABC Newsnews · ABC News · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage — CNNnews · CNN · 2026-07-07
More cases in Georgia