'It's always the ones you least expect' Neighbours react to murder investigation after 79-year-old suspect arrested

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – A 79-year-old man was taken into custody Monday after authorities said he called 911 to tell them he had killed his wife. The call came shortly before the man turned himself in. According to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, Stephen Chan was arrested on a first-degree murder charge Sunday, Sept. 1, after a woman was found dead in north Colorado Springs.

People close to the Chan family told 11 News they were shocked. One neighbor our news team spoke to has lived next door to the Chans for nearly a decade. He said the situation is almost unbelievable.

“I knew right away that something pretty horrible was happening. We’ve had police cars out for a number of reasons before, but we’ve never had this many officers and this much tape. It was clear that this was something very, very serious,” said Tom Carter, a neighbor of eight years.

Carter said he never suspected something like this could happen in his neighborhood.

“We never had any problems. They were very calm. They minded their own business. They seem to have very bright, diligent children,” Carter recalls of the Chans.

Carter saw the house covered in police tape early Sunday morning before Labor Day and knew immediately something was wrong.

“They say, ‘You least expect it.’ They seemed like a normal, happy family. Obviously, that wasn’t the case,” Carter said.

El Paso County Sheriff’s Office officers said they found a woman dead near a pond Sunday near Walsen Road in north Colorado Springs. That’s less than a mile from the Chans’ home.

While authorities have not confirmed the victim’s name, people 11 News spoke with who worked with her and lived next door to her said they are still processing the loss and waiting for answers.

“It’s really unfortunate. Horrible things. You say it could never happen here, and then it happens two houses down,” Carter said.

Chan’s photo has not yet been released by the sheriff’s office. He will appear in court Monday for his first appearance.