I miss my conejo. He is my life just like my (e:mike).

Updated: September 22, 2010, 6:51 PM

Homicide investigators late this afternoon were at the scene of what was described as a murder-suicide at 54 Tuxedo Place in the city's Riverside neighborhood.

Police described the victims as a woman in her late 40s and man in his early 50s -- boyfriend and girlfriend. The violence, police said, erupted during a domestic dispute.

Further information was unavailable.

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Nevermind, guest. I found what you were referring to. I had no idea it was so recent. I almost was killed once because of domestic violence. I had a knife to my throat and thought I was going to die. I was lucky but Valerie and this unfortunate woman were not.

A Tuxedo Place woman about to escape an abusive relationship was killed Wednesday by her estranged boyfriend, who then took his own life inside the apartment they shared, police said.

Loud quarrels between Joy Rizzo, 49, and Andrew Soos, 51, were said to have been frequent in their lower flat. Often -- and as recently as three days ago -- they ventured outside, in full view of neighbors, according to Trina Pena, Rizzo's friend.

"She was trying to leave him," Pena said. "She was scared. She feared for her life, and [Soos] took her life."

Neighbors said Rizzo was packing her belongings into boxes and planned to move to Florida with another man she had known since childhood and had befriended again on Facebook.

That was the reason for the loud quarrel that neighbors heard earlier this week.

"[Soos] was standing on his porch saying, 'Over my dead body,'" Pena said.

The other man, who neighbors called "Steve," was supposed to have been picked up by Rizzo earlier Wednesday. When Rizzo did not show up, he called her unsuccessfully before showing up on Tuxedo Place, which is north of Hertel Avenue, a few blocks east of Military Road.

When there was no answer at the apartment, police were summoned.

Northwest District officers responded after 2 p.m. to make "a welfare check" on the two, and the landlord arrived with a key to let them in.

"Police arrived on scene, gained access to the home, and, once inside, they found the bodies," said Michael J. DeGeorge, Buffalo police spokesman. "Right now, it appears to be an apparent murder-suicide that appears to be domestic in nature."

Police would not say what type of weapon was involved. However, neighbors described hearing two gunshots at about 1:45 p.m.

Authorities released few details of the crime, saying only that it remained "under investigation" by homicide detectives. Police did not release the names of the victims.

Nancy Young, a neighbor, said she had been friends with Rizzo since childhood. The two attended Hoover Elementary School and Kenmore West High School together and had remained friends ever since. Soos, Young said, was the first man Rizzo let abuse her.

"I was surprised she stayed with a violent man," Young said. "She never put up with it before. She tried to leave him several times. He had some kind of fear of God in her."

Young described Soos as a controlling man who once cut the brake lines to her vehicle to keep her and Rizzo from attending a concert together at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center. She said Rizzo liked the outdoors, including hiking in Zoar Valley, camping, volleyball and football.

The couple leaves behind a 12-year-old son who was met at school Wednesday by police. The child is now in the care of relatives. Neighbors said the boy would often be seen walking down the street and stopping to visit during quarrels between his parents.

Neighbors said Rizzo's older son from a previous relationship, Nick Rizzo, now 22, spent time in jail after coming to the defense of his mother by hitting Soos in the head with a baseball bat. The Nov. 22, 2004, police report states that the incident occurred at Chadduck and Ontario streets. Soos was taken by ambulance to Erie County Medical Center.

Nick Rizzo is now serving up to seven years in the Attica Correctional Facility for robbery, burglary and grand larceny, according to state Department of Correctional Services records.

Soos' wife of two years, the former Valerie Wilkins, 43, was found slain behind a Niagara Street bar in November 1996. Her ring finger was cut off after her death, but before authorities found her nude body in her car behind Campbell's Pub, 1591 Niagara St.

"Cold Case Squad detectives were recently looking into that cold case," Dennis J. Richards, chief of detectives, said late Wednesday, "and furthermore were conferring with homicide detectives who were at the scene of today's find."

This was written by By T.J. Pignataro for the Buffalo News.

Please read the comments of this journal by clicking on the bubble with the letters abc.

I wasn't able to reply to your message to me because I didn't have an email address. I'm really sorry for your loss. I hope that my journal has not caused any further pain. If it has, or you think it will hurt her family, please contact me again and I will remove it. To hurt anyone that knew her more would be the last thing I want. From the memorial I knew she meant a lot to those around her and that she is missed very much.

I suspected her husband but was afraid to say so, and I am glad he is dead. I'm sorry that he was able to kill another. Do you have the news story? I wasn't able to find it. I really want to express my sympathies to her daughters. I'm really surprised that the police weren't able to link him to the crime. Was there really no evidence or were they just not investigating?

I did pray for her and that she would get justice. I really wanted her murder to be solved. Every single time I ride by the place they found her body I think about her, thanks to the memorial...

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guest says: Andy just killed himself and his current wife it was on the news. That guy should rot in hell. Valerie was a close family friend. So sad. But its interesting how you went about investigating her. She was a sweet woman.

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Probably haven’t gotten to the point that it is a major problem, but I cleaned my closets out recently and am getting a little scared.

I saved almost all of the boxes that I moved with because I want to move again and don’t want to have the hassle of getting more.

I save all the bubble wrap I get and it turns out I have a garbage bag and a medium sized box full. IF you need some let me know.

I save gift bags and tissue paper.

I have a vacuum that I garbage picked but it doesn’t work and I don’t want to throw it out in case somebody can fix it.

I have many of my notebooks and folders from high school and college, despite the fact that I NEVER look at them.

I had a HUGE collection of adapters, cords, wires and crap that I saved in case I ever need it. I got so freaked out that I was hoarding that I am getting rid of a lot of it….

The stuff I plan on getting rid of I also save so that I can find a place to recycle it….

This year was the year of fried chicken and I have about 6 gallons of used oil that I am saving so I can find a place to recycle it.

I save plastics that aren’t recyclable in Buffalo so I can bring them to other municipalities that do recycle more than #1 and #2 plastics.

There are piles of documents that I refuse to deal with. I want to but I never do.

A lot of books I have I will not ever read again or ever and they are still here.

I do keep some clothing for sentimental reasons. Not sure if that is totally abnormal or not.

This is really awful, but there is a box I have of crucifixes and I can’t throw them away. It just seems wrong for so many reasons. My grandparents gave me them and one of them is handmade by my grandfather. They also have my name inscribed in them. So they sit in this shoebox for all eternity because I can’t give them away, I can’t bury them and I definitely will not burn them!

I’m pretty sure that this will get worse as I get older. I think it is something I always have to keep in check and it traces back to when I was much younger. At one time, I saved all of the greeting cards I ever got. Then one day I threw almost all of them out. I guess a real hoarder would never do that, but I can purge and actually would never live like a true hoarder…at least I hope not. I swear to God, I will never have cat shit piling up in a corner.