Wilmington man charged with 1st degree murder makes first court appearance

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A Wilmington man charged with murdering his girlfriend made his first court appearance Wednesday morning.

31-year-old Michael Lavelle is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 31-year-old Holly Petteys.

Her body was found on April 22nd inside a unit at the One Midtown Apartments after neighbors called about the smell.

Investigators say she had been dead for up to two weeks.

Prosecutors say Petteys was stabbed seven times, including several wounds to her neck.

On the day of his arrest, Lavelle allegedly returned to the scene, ran from police, and stabbed himself with a hunting knife.

He was also allegedly in possession of a credit card that belonged to Petteys.

He’s being held without bond and is due back in court on May 15th.

If convicted, Lavelle could face life in prison without parole or the death penalty, but prosecutors did not say whether they would be pushing for the death penalty or not at this time.