A paranoid man from Illinois has allegedly killed his girlfriend and then later himself, after falsely believing that they both had COVID-19, the Will County Sheriff's Office has reported.

According to ABC News, Patrick Jesernik and his partner Cheryl Schriefer, who both eventually tested negative for the virus, were found by authorities inside their home in Lockport Township, Chicago.

Per ABC, officers from the Will County Sheriff’s Office discovered the bodies of Schriefer and Jesernik on Thursday when they attempted to contact them both at home to conduct a welfare check. Their bodies were found in separate rooms in the residence, each with a single bullet wound.

Investigators found a revolver carrying three live rounds next to Jesernik's corpse, and forensics later found two shell casings elsewhere in the property.

Relatives of the couple told police investigators that Schriefer had become paranoid over the virus in recent weeks, after he developed respiratory problems.

In a press release, DC Dan Jungles said: "Family arrived on scene and stated that Patrick had been scared that he and Cheryl had contracted the COVID-19 virus, and that Cheryl was tested two days ago. It was reported that Cheryl was having a hard time breathing. The family stated that to their knowledge, she had not received the test result."

Tragically, an autopsy performed on their bodies by the police determined conclusively that they both tested negative for the virus.

In a White House Taskforce briefing on Wednesday, President Trump claimed that his administration was doing everything possible to protect Americans from the pandemic, stating: "We’re attacking the virus in every front with social distancing, economic support for our workers, rapid medical intervention, and very serious innovation and banning dangerous foreign travel that threatens the health of our people."

At the time of writing, there have now been 1,363,365 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across 114 countries worldwide, and a total of 76,420 deaths, according to the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.

A paranoid man from Illinois has allegedly killed his girlfriend and then later himself, after falsely believing that they both had COVID-19, the Will County Sheriff's Office has reported.

According to ABC News, Patrick Jesernik and his partner Cheryl Schriefer, who both eventually tested negative for the virus, were found by authorities inside their home in Lockport Township, Chicago.

Per ABC, officers from the Will County Sheriff’s Office discovered the bodies of Schriefer and Jesernik on Thursday when they attempted to contact them both at home to conduct a welfare check. Their bodies were found in separate rooms in the residence, each with a single bullet wound.

Investigators found a revolver carrying three live rounds next to Jesernik's corpse, and forensics later found two shell casings elsewhere in the property.

Relatives of the couple told police investigators that Schriefer had become paranoid over the virus in recent weeks, after he developed respiratory problems.

In a press release, DC Dan Jungles said: "Family arrived on scene and stated that Patrick had been scared that he and Cheryl had contracted the COVID-19 virus, and that Cheryl was tested two days ago. It was reported that Cheryl was having a hard time breathing. The family stated that to their knowledge, she had not received the test result."

Tragically, an autopsy performed on their bodies by the police determined conclusively that they both tested negative for the virus.

In a White House Taskforce briefing on Wednesday, President Trump claimed that his administration was doing everything possible to protect Americans from the pandemic, stating: "We’re attacking the virus in every front with social distancing, economic support for our workers, rapid medical intervention, and very serious innovation and banning dangerous foreign travel that threatens the health of our people."

At the time of writing, there have now been 1,363,365 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across 114 countries worldwide, and a total of 76,420 deaths, according to the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.