Riverhead man kills wife, then surrenders to police after four hours, cops say

A Riverhead man fatally shot his wife Tuesday and then barricaded himself in their home for nearly four hours before he was arrested, Suffolk County police said. 

Riverhead Town police responded to the home of Robert Brown, 65, at 9:20 a.m. after receiving reports of a man carrying a handgun. 

The Suffolk County Police Hostage Team and Emergency Service Section officer responded to a home on Doris Avenue and found that Brown had barricaded himself in the house. Police knocked down the door after a nearly five-hour standoff.

Police found the body of Brown’s wife, Sarah Brown, 71, after Robert Brown was taken into custody at about 2 p.m. She had died from a gunshot wound, police said. 

Brown was taken to Suffolk County police headquarters in Yaphank where he was charged with second-degree murder. He was be held overnight at Riverhead Town police headquarters and will be arraigned Wednesday at the Town of Riverhead Justice Court.