Karina Cooper (Tama County Sheriff’s Office) and the home where she allegedly fatally shot her husband in the face three years ago (KCCI screenshot)

Nearly three years after a father in Iowa was fatally shot in the face while sitting in a recliner chair at home, his wife has been arrested and accused of being the one who pulled the trigger. Karina S. Cooper was taken into custody on Monday and charged with one count of first-degree premeditated murder in the 2021 slaying of Ryan Cooper, authorities announced.

According to court documents released by the Tama County Sheriff’s Office, deputies at about 4:35 a.m. on June 18, 2021, responded to a call reporting someone being shot at a home in the 1800 block of K Avenue in Traer, Iowa. The home was identified as the residence of Ryan and Karina Cooper.

Authorities who responded to the address walked into a grisly scene, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in the case.

“The first deputy arrived on scene at approximately 4:42 a.m., almost seven minutes after the 911 call. This deputy walked inside the residence and found a male laying in a recliner chair with what appeared to be a gun shot to the head in the front face area,” the document states. “Karina Cooper was sitting on top of the male later identified as Ryan Cooper.”

Aside from the victim, Karina Cooper and her three children were the only other people found in the home, police said. They were promptly removed from the home as deputies contacted emergency medical personnel. The Tama County Medical Examiner responded to the scene, where Ryan Cooper was pronounced dead.