Police said two children from the home are staying with relatives as the case proceeds.
SANBORN, N.Y. — A Buffalo police officer charged with second-degree murder in his wife’s death was taken into custody early Sunday after investigators said the 35-year-old woman was found shot inside the couple’s Niagara County home, and court records show she filed for a contested divorce months earlier.
Authorities have identified the victim as Alexis Skoczylas and the defendant as Lance Woods, 53, an off-duty Buffalo Police Department officer who was arrested after a multi-agency search. New York Attorney General Letitia James said Woods was arraigned Sunday in Niagara County’s centralized arraignment part and remanded into custody. The state attorney general’s Office of Special Investigation is also reviewing the case under a law that applies when an officer may have caused a death.
The investigation began with a welfare check at a home on Buffalo Street in Sanborn, a small community in the Town of Cambria. Lewiston police said officers went to the residence just after 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, and found Skoczylas dead inside. Investigators said she had a single gunshot wound to the head. Police have not said how long she had been dead when officers arrived, whether a weapon was recovered at the scene, or what evidence led them to conclude Woods was responsible.
Lewiston Police Chief Michael Salada said Woods and Skoczylas were married and that there had been no prior calls for domestic violence involving the couple, based on information available to his department. Salada said two children live at the home and are now in the care of relatives. The chief did not describe the children’s ages or whether they were home at the time of the shooting, and investigators have not released details about who requested the welfare check or what prompted concern for Skoczylas’ safety.
Court documents cited by local reporting show Skoczylas filed for a contested divorce in September 2025. Authorities have not described the couple’s relationship in the days leading up to the shooting, and they have not said whether the divorce case included requests for protection, custody terms, or other court orders. Investigators also have not released a timeline of when Woods was last seen at the home and when he left Niagara County, details that could become central as prosecutors and defense attorneys argue over intent and events leading up to the death.
Buffalo police said the Lewiston Police Department contacted their 911 dispatch lieutenant at about 1 a.m. Sunday as officers searched for Woods. In a statement, Buffalo police said its detectives coordinated with Lewiston police and shared investigative resources to assist in the apprehension, including efforts to locate the vehicle Woods was believed to be driving. Authorities said Woods was detained during a traffic stop by Amherst police between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m., a development that ended a nightlong search and led to his arrest.
Attorney General James said Woods was at home with his family when he allegedly shot Skoczylas on Feb. 14. The attorney general’s office said Woods was arraigned by Town of Somerset Justice of the Peace Pamela Rider, who presided over the proceeding in the centralized arraignment part. Officials did not announce a future court date in the initial statements, and prosecutors have not publicly described what evidence was presented at arraignment or whether an order of protection was issued.
Woods has worked for the Buffalo Police Department since January 2008, according to local reporting, and he has held assignments that included work as a school resource officer and service in the B District, which covers much of downtown Buffalo. Local reporting also cited a Buffalo police social media post stating Woods was promoted to the rank of detective in 2017. The department has not detailed his current assignment or whether he was carrying department equipment while off duty.
Buffalo police said Woods is not a member of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association and that he exercised Janus rights to leave the union, a reference to a U.S. Supreme Court decision that allows public employees to opt out of paying union fees. The union status does not affect the criminal charge itself, but it can shape how workplace representation and internal disciplinary processes unfold as the case moves through court and as the department reviews Woods’ status as an employee.
Under New York Executive Law Section 70-b, the attorney general’s Office of Special Investigation assesses incidents in which a police officer or other covered officer may have caused a death by act or omission. The law applies whether the officer was on duty or off duty and regardless of whether the person who died was armed, unarmed, or in custody. If the assessment indicates an officer caused the death, the office proceeds to a full investigation. Buffalo police said it would continue coordinating with the state office as that review proceeds.
Buffalo police also said its internal affairs division is reviewing the timeline of events surrounding the case. Authorities have not said whether Woods has been suspended, placed on administrative leave, or stripped of police powers while the criminal case is pending, steps that often vary based on departmental policy and the stage of prosecution. Investigators likewise have not said whether they are awaiting forensic testing, ballistics results, cellphone data, or medical examiner findings beyond the initial report of a gunshot wound.
The death and arrest have reverberated across multiple communities in Western New York, from Buffalo to Lewiston and the rural stretches of Niagara County where Sanborn sits near the Erie Canal. Even as investigators work quietly, the case has carried unusual visibility because it involves a police officer and because multiple agencies were involved in locating him. Officials have asked anyone with information to contact Lewiston police, while also cautioning that the charge is an accusation and that Woods is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Author note: Last updated February 16, 2026.