DULUTH – A man accused of fatally stabbing his wife on Saturday night, leaving behind a bloodied knife in a glass of water before he skipped town, has been charged with second-degree murder.
Corddarro Andrew Cope, 37, made his first appearance Tuesday at the St. Louis County Courthouse, where he was charged with a single felony in the death of Anissa Cope, 49.
According to court documents, a neighbor in a lower-level apartment called 911 on Saturday evening to report that she could hear a woman in her apartment building getting thrown around and screaming for help, while a man told her to shut up.
While still on the phone, the neighbor saw Cope leave the apartment in a truck.
Officers at the scene found a bloodied Nike sandal on the steps leading up to the Copes’ apartment and found Anissa Cope with stab wounds and lying in a pool of blood. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Less than an hour after the initial emergency call, a Carlton County deputy spotted Cope driving south on Interstate 35 in the victim’s truck. The deputy found blood on Cope’s hands, feet and abdomen when he was arrested, according to court documents. The other Nike sandal was in the truck.
Corddarro Cope has been charged in Wisconsin’s Douglas County with violent crimes including battery, to which he pleaded guilty about five years ago.
