Worcester County man charged, held without bail after wife found dead

A Worcester County man found with a knife protruding from his neck while his wife was dead in another room in their home is being held without bail after pleading not guilty to domestic assault charges, reports said.

Michael Sugarman, 42, was found by police in Grafton on Wednesday after his 5-year-old daughter was found wandering alone outside and led officers to a grisly scene in her home, WCVB reported. Officers found a wounded Sugarman in the kitchen and the girl’s mother, 36-year-old Kelly Sugarman, dead in a bedroom.

When officers found the unidentified child she reportedly told them “mommy is sick” and “mommy is asleep,” according to WHDH.

Michael Sugarman’s knife wound was treated at the scene before he was transported to a hospital, WHDH reported.

According to WCVB, Michael Sugarman appeared in Westborough District Court Wednesday afternoon with stitches on his neck and pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of domestic assault and battery. Sugarman’s defense attorney said he expects the charges to be upgraded to murder, WHDH reported.

Sugarman is being held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing, WHDH reported.

“He made statements on the way that he was off his medication when this happened and made several inquiries as to how his wife was…. We had information that the couple was experiencing extreme financial difficulty and that had been the source of a number of arguments and fights between the two,” said prosecutor Terry McLaughlin, according to WHDH.

The Department of Children and Families currently has custody of the child, WCVB reported.