An NYPD cop trailed his wife and her young lover to an upstate hotel — then fatally shot the man before killing himself in a love triangle that turned deadly, police sources told The Post on Monday, May 9, 2022.
Enraged, jealous cop Sean Armstead, 36, was supposed to be working a midnight shift in the Bronx but called in sick to hunt down his wife, Alexandra Vanderheyden, 35, and her 20-year-old dog-walking beau, Edward Wilkins, on Sunday, sources said.
The bloody saga unfolded after the illicit lovebirds drove separately toward their meeting spot — a La Quinta Inn in Wallkill — around 3:45 p.m. Sunday, sources said.
Vanderheyden, who employed Wilkins in her dog-walking business, decided to ditch her car down the road before reaching the hotel, and her lover picked her up — because she was wary that her hubby might be on to them and wanted to throw him off if he came looking for her, sources said.
The pair stayed at the hotel for several hours before heading out to a local Golden Corral restaurant for dinner, sources said. They then headed to a Dave & Busters in the area, sources said.
Shortly after 10:45 p.m., the couple left the entertainment site and headed back to their hotel, sources said. Figuring it was safe by then for Vanderheyden to retrieve her car — given her cop husband had to be at work soon — Wilkins dropped her off at her vehicle, and they began to drive separately back to the hotel to rendezvous again.
But Armstead was on their tail — with Vanderheyden later telling investigators she believes that her husband tracked her through her cellphone, sources said.
The cuckolded hubby chased down Wilkins as both drove on NY-211, crashing his vehicle into his love rival’s car and spinning it around on the state highway, witnesses and sources said. Both cars eventually came to rest facing east in the roadway’s westbound lanes, they said.
Wilkins then jumped out of his car and ran for his life, authorities said.
He got as far as the parking lot of a nearby Buffalo Wild Wings, where he was shot in the back of the head in a volley of 16 bullets fired by Armstead, officials said.
The veteran cop then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide, according to the sources.
Vanderheyden, who had been following in her car, drove up to see her husband and lover each lying in a pool of blood on the pavement, the sources said.
The blood could still be seen outside the restaurant Monday morning.
“It happened outside,” a Buffalo Wild Wings manager told The Post. “The night manager told me she kept everyone inside and locked the doors.”
In a statement on Monday, May 9, 2022, Vanderheyden’s family called the murder-suicide “a devastating tragedy for the victims and families involved.
“Our family has been directly impacted by the traumatic events that occurred late on May 8,” Joe Meyer, Vanderheyden’s brother, said in the statement.
“We’re awaiting the outcome of the law enforcement investigation to determine exactly what happened,” Meyer said. “We ask the members of the media to respect the privacy of the families and victims involved in this tragic event and to allow law enforcement to effectively investigate.”
Wilkins’ family declined to comment on the incident Monday. Armstead’s kin were unable to be reached.
Sources said Wilkins was working at Vanderheyden’s dog-walking business when the two became romantically involved.
They said Vanderheyden and Armstead’s 9-year-old marriage had hit a rough spot at some point and that the cop had grown suspicious of the affair.
In a statement released on Monday, May 9, 2022, the Wallkill Police Department said both men were pronounced dead at the scene.
Armstead was appointed to the NYPD in July 2011 and worked in PSA 8, which patrols NYCHA developments in a section of the Bronx.
- Alexandra Vanderheyden and her alleged lover, Edward Wilkins, check into the La Quinta hotel in Wallkill around 3:45 p.m. Sunday with Vanderheyden parking her car elsewhere, out of sight. The pair then goes to a Golden Corral restaurant in the area for dinner and later to a local Dave & Busters. Shortly after 10:45 p.m., Vanderheyden believes her husband, NYPD Officer Sean Armstead, is on his way to a midnight shift and has Wilkins drive her to her car.
- Cuckolded husband Armstead, who began tailing the couple, chases down Wilkins and crashes into his car, ending with both vehicles facing east on NY-211 in the westbound lanes.
- Wilkins flees from his car and into the Buffalo Wild Wings parking lot. Armstead fires off 16 rounds, striking Wilkins in the back of the head. He reloads and shoots himself in the head. Vanderheyden, who had been following Wilkins on her way back to the hotel, comes upon the scene and sees both bodies.
He had five complaints filed against him in three separate incidents in 2013 and 2014, but none were substantiated, according to NYPD and Civilian Complaint Review Board records.
There are no records of departmental discipline due to the complaints, which were for excessive force, discourtesy, and abuse of authority.
Back in 2016, Armstead was assaulted and robbed of his wallet — containing his NYPD identification card — while walking his dog in Harlem, according to police sources.
Wallkill cops said several agencies are involved in the murder-suicide investigation.
Source: New York Post
