Police said officers making a welfare check found the 84-year-old woman dead in a Groveland home.
GROVELAND, Fla. — An 82-year-old Lake County man has been charged with first-degree murder after police said they found his wife dead beside a hammer during a welfare check Sunday night at the couple’s home on Way Point Drive.
Authorities said the case began around 9 p.m. April 19, when Groveland police were called to check on the couple. Investigators say the call led them to a bloody scene inside the house and to evidence that suggests the woman had been dead for more than a day before officers arrived. The husband, Vincent DiFraia, was later booked into the Lake County jail on the murder charge as detectives continued to review the circumstances inside the home.
According to the arrest affidavit, officers found DiFraia sitting on a couch when they entered the home. Investigators said he appeared to have blood on him and had cuts on both arms that officers believed were self-inflicted. He was taken to Orlando Health South Lake Hospital for treatment and evaluation before questioning. When an officer went farther into the home, police said, he found DiFraia’s 84-year-old wife in a bedroom. A hammer was beside her, and the room showed signs of a violent attack. The affidavit says the victim was covered in blood and that blood was also visible on the bedroom walls and ceiling.
The medical examiner’s office later determined the woman had died more than 24 hours before her body was discovered, according to investigators. The affidavit says she had a large impact wound on the side of her head. Detectives also reported finding dried blood in a sink and on the floor leading toward a bathroom. Other bloody items were recovered from a kitchen trash can and from the area near the sink, the document says. Based on those findings, Groveland police concluded that the victim died from blunt-force trauma and alleged that DiFraia caused the fatal injuries with the hammer found near the bed.
Police said the investigation also turned up earlier comments by DiFraia about what officers described as a possible suicide pact involving pills about a month before the killing. Investigators said he had also tried to cut his wrist with a knife before authorities arrived at the home. Court records cited in the affidavit did not explain what happened in the hours immediately before the woman’s death or whether anyone else had contact with the couple during that period. Detectives have not publicly released additional details about a motive beyond the statements and physical evidence described in the arrest paperwork.
Neighbors told local reporters the couple had lived quietly and largely kept to themselves, making the case hard for nearby residents to process. One neighbor described them as a nice older couple and said the neighborhood is usually calm, with many longtime homeowners and older residents. Those reactions underscored the shock that often follows a killing inside a home that neighbors had viewed as peaceful. The case has also drawn attention because of the ages of both the suspect and the victim, a detail that gave the already violent allegations an added layer of sadness for people who knew them only in passing.
The charge against DiFraia is first-degree murder, one of the most serious offenses under Florida law. As of Tuesday, he was being held in the Lake County jail, according to police and jail information cited in local reporting. It was not immediately clear whether he had appeared in court or retained an attorney. Further steps in the case are expected to include a first appearance, prosecutorial review of the evidence collected from the house, and continued forensic analysis tied to the scene.
For now, the case stands at the charging stage, with investigators pointing to the hammer, blood evidence and medical findings as central parts of the allegation. The next public milestone is expected to come in court as the murder case moves through Lake County’s judicial process.
Author note: Last updated April 23, 2026.