An arraignment date has been set for an Independence man charged with murder for choking his wife to death in May.

Ronnie J. Wiggs, 76, allegedly strangled his wife on May 3 while she was at Centerpoint Medical Center, 19600 E. 39th St. S in Independence. The woman had come to Centerpoint to get a new port for her dialysis.

The victim was last seen alive around 7:30 p.m. on May 3. An hour later, hospital staff called a Code Blue on the woman, who had sustained injuries to her neck and throat.

Wiggs was arrested around 11:30 after an off-duty Independence police officer responded to the ICU.

Medical staff heard Wiggs saying, “I did it, I killed her, I choked her,” according to court documents. Wiggs admitted to Independence police later that night that he had strangled her while covering her nose and mouth.

Wiggs was initially arrested for first-degree domestic assault, The Star reported, as his wife was alive but brain-dead after the attack. Medical staff later discontinued life support due to her lack of brain activity.

Wiggs was charged with second-degree murder the next day, May 4. If convicted, Wiggs could serve between 10 years and life, or 30 years, in prison.

Wiggs told police he could not afford to take care of his wife or afford her medical bills, according to court records. He had tried to kill her twice before, The Star reported, including while she was getting medical issues treated at a rehabilitation facility.

Wiggs is being held on a $250,000 bond. His arraignment is scheduled for June 27 at 1:30 p.m.

The murder was the eighth homicide reported in Independence this year, according to data collected by The Star.

By May 3 of last year, three homicides had been reported in the city, according to Star data.

Previous reporting by Andrea Klick was used in this article.