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The incident happened Tuesday morning, Oct. 6 in Suffolk County.
An officer initiated a traffic stop of a 2003 Honda Civic at the intersection of Route 112 and Montauk Highway in East Patchogue at approximately 10 a.m.
The driver pulled over and a passenger exited the vehicle before the driver left the scene, Suffolk County Police said.
A short time later the vehicle crashed into a utility pole on Washington Avenue in East Patchogue.
Officers approached the vehicle and found the driver, now identified as 43-year-old William Farnum, of Doane Avenue in Bellport, had slit his own throat, according to police.
The officer removed Farnum from the vehicle, called for rescue and began to administer first aid, police said.
Farnum was pronounced dead at the scene by a physician assistant from the Office of the Suffolk County Medical Examiner.
Homicide Squad detectives responded to a home on Doane Avenue in Bellport to notify next of kin and discovered the bodies of a man and woman inside the home, police said.
On Thursday, Oct.15, Suffolk County Police said the two people whose bodies were found at the Bellport home have been identified as James Farnum, 79, and Amanda Farnum, 46.
Both deaths have been ruled homicides.
The investigation is continuing.
Police are asking anyone with information on this incident to contact Homicide Squad detectives at 631-852-6392 or anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.
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