A man who made a joke about marriage during an appearance on Family Feud has been found guilty of his wife's murder.
On May 31, a jury in Adams County, Illinois, found Timothy Bliefnick guilty of fatally shooting his estranged wife, Rebecca Bliefnick, as reported by USA Today.
In addition to the first-degree murder charge, Associated Press stated that Mr. Bliefnick, 40, was also found guilty of one count of a home invasion.
The former game show contestant did not testify during his trial and the defense did not call any evidence. He previously pleaded not guilty to all his charges.
Watch the verdict ruling below:Rebecca's body was discovered by a family member in the bathroom of her home on February 23. Police officers then arrested her husband in connection to the killing on March 13.
The former couple were locked in divorce proceedings and a bitter custody battle over their three sons at the time. Before her death, the victim filed for an order of protection from her husband in 2021, per additional court papers filed. A hearing in the divorce had been scheduled a week before prosecutors said she was found shot 14 times.
The victim's sister, Sarah Reilly, took the stand on behalf of the prosecution last week and testified that her sister previously disclosed to her that she was afraid that her ex-husband might physically harm her.
"If something ever happens to me, make sure the number one person of interest is Tim," the victim texted her sister in 2021, as cited by AP.
According to an online obituary, Rebecca was 41 years old at the time of her murder. She was a graduate of Quincy University and worked as a "top-performing" pharmaceutical sales rep for Sanofi Aventis.
Her family issued a statement after the ruling, which read: "As a family of faith, we are deeply thankful for our family, friends, and the complete strangers who have rallied around us and prayed for us during these incredibly dark days. We live with the hope that the worst moment of our lives cannot define who we are, as we pick up the pieces to raise Becky's boys in the way we know she would want."
"While life cannot be normal in the ways it once was, such love and support does help restore the belief that the world does, in fact, have more good than evil. As they go forward with the certain truth that their father murdered their mother, we ask that you keep Becky’s three, incredible boys in your prayers," they added.
Furthermore, Adams County Assistant State’s Attorney Josh Jones described her final moments to the jury during opening statements at this month's trial.
"The last minutes of Becky’s life were not spent in the warm embrace of her three children: Deacon, Greyson, and Arlin," he said, per Complex. "The last minutes of Becky’s life were not spent in love and compassion and tenderness. No, the last minutes of Becky’s life were spent in fear and pain and terror as she lay on the cold gray tiles of her bathroom floor slowly bleeding to death."
The shocking verdict comes after a resurfaced clip showed Timothy and some of his family members appearing on ABC’s Family Feud.
During one of the segments, host Steve Harvey asked, "What was the biggest mistake you made at your wedding?" to which Timothy answered, "I do." He then immediately told the 66-year-old: "Not mine to say, not mine to say. I love my wife...I’m going to get in trouble for that, aren’t I?"
The now-convicted murderer's attorney Casey Schnack told Fox News Digital on May 31 that the remark was a harmless joke that had nothing to do with the couple's decision to separate.
Timothy's sentencing has been scheduled for August 11. He faces 45 years to life in prison.
