Fort Worth man who allegedly stabbed wife in throat first told police she did it herself, affidavit says

FORT WORTH, Texas - A Fort Worth man who is accused of stabbing and killing his wife originally told police she did it herself, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

39-year-old Nathaniel Rowland is charged with murder in the death of his wife, Elizabeth Rowland.

Nathaniel Rowland (Source: Fort Worth Jail)

Police went to a home on Camden Yard Drive on Feb. 23 after a man called 911 and said his wife had stabbed herself in the throat.

When police arrived at the home they found Elizabeth nearly decapitated in the kitchen, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

"It appeared that Elizabeth's head was only attached to her body by the spinal cord," a detective wrote in the affidavit.

Rowland told police that he followed his wife into the kitchen and watched her stab herself, according to investigators.

Police were skeptical of Rowland's story due to the severity of the injuries, documents show.

Forensic death investigators at the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office determined the woman's injuries were not consistent with being self-inflicted.

They also found what they believed to be "defensive wounds" on the back of Elizabeth's hands, according to the affidavit.

Elizabeth's 15-year-old daughter was home at the time of her death.

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She told police everyone had just returned from dinner and that everyone was in a good mood, according to police.

Nathaniel and Elizabeth got married in September, but had known each other for the last decade.

Rowland had previously been arrested by Irving Police for aggravated assault on May 21, 2023, when he allegedly hit a woman in the face hard enough to break her teeth, documents show. The outcome of that case is still pending.

Rowland is currently in the Fort Worth Jail.