The suspect and the victim were separated and going through divorce proceedings at the time of the murder-suicide, according to Lakeland police.

LAKELAND — A man killed his estranged wife and then shot himself Wednesday afternoon, the Lakeland police reported at a mid-afternoon press conference outside the Willowbrooke Apartments in Lakeland.

Shortly after 1 p.m., Lakeland police received two 911 calls to an apartment in Willowbrooke Apartments in the Oakbridge area of Lakeland. The first call, from an anonymous caller, reported shots fired in the area. The second call came from the female victim's relative reporting that a family member at the apartments had been shot, Assistant Chief Rick Taylor said.

Taylor said the arriving officers performed life-saving measures, but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene by EMS.

The witness at the apartments saw a suspect leaving the shortly after the shooting, Taylor said.

“We got a good description of the vehicle. We got a good description of the suspect. Our officers began searching the area for the suspect,” Taylor said.

In about 15 minutes, police arrived at the suspect's home near South Lakeland with the Polk County Sheriff's Office. Deputies and officers found the suspect dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Taylor said.

The suspect and the victim were separated and going through divorce proceedings, Taylor said. He declined to release the names pending next of kin.

There was no one else inside the apartment when the crime occurred, Taylor said, adding that police knew of no other calls for service at the apartment.

“We are unaware of any other domestic violence or any calls between the two of them,” he said.

Police said the woman had lived in the apartment for about a year. Taylor said the couple do not have children together, but the woman has an adult child.

A small dog was taken by police from the apartment, and when asked by friends who were weeping in the parking lot where the detective was taking the dog, the detective told them he was taking the dog to family.

Kathy Leigh Berkowitz can be reached at kberkowitz@theledger.com or at 863-802-7558. Follow her on Twitter @kberkowitzthel1.