Chris Benoit 1967 - 2007

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Police investigating the double-murder suicide involving pro wrestler Chris Benoit are reportedly examining Wikipedia updates from a US and a Sydney-based computer which revealed the death of Benoit's wife 14 hours before police discovered their bodies.

Benoit, his wife Nancy, and their seven-year-old son, Daniel, were found dead in their Atlanta home on Monday afternoon [US time].

Police believe the 40-year-old - whose nicknames included the Rabid Wolverine and the Canadian Crippler - strangled his wife and son on either Friday or Saturday and placed Bibles next to their bodies before hanging himself from a cable on his weight machine.

But in a bizarre twist, reports have surfaced that Benoit's Wikipedia page was altered to include details about his wife's death well before police knew about the crime.

"Wikinews has learned through an investigation that anonymous edits on the Wikipedia article Chris Benoit were added about the death of his wife Nancy Benoit 14 hours before police entered the Benoit home to find the former professional World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Canadian wrestler and his family dead," a report on Wikinews says.

The first edit to Benoit's Wikipedia page regarded a competition he had been due to take part in at the weekend.

"Chris Benoit was replaced by Johnny Nitro for the ECW Championship match at Vengeance, as Benoit was not there due to personal issues, stemming from the death of his wife Nancy," the anonymous editor wrote.

That post has since been traced to a location in Connecticut where WWE has its headquarters.

About an hour later, the post was taken down by a Wikipedia moderator, who said: "Need a reliable source. Saying that his wife died is a pretty big statement, you need to back it up with something."

Then, an hour later, a second anonymous editor added more information about Benoit's no-show, saying "... which according to several pro wrestling websites is attributed to the passing of Benoit's wife, Nancy".

The edit has since been traced to a computer hooked up to the Australian-based wireless internet service provider UnWired.

The Herald understands that the computer belongs to a Sydney resident.

Twenty minutes after the Australian-sourced edit appeared, the Wikipedia moderator again reversed the post, because "saying 'several pro wrestling websites' is still not reliable information."

Wikinews says Cary Bass, a volunteer co-ordinator for the Wikimedia Foundation, has informed Atlanta police about the unusual edits.

"It didn't become apparent until someone put the pieces together and realised that the comment was made by someone who apparently knew about the murders," Wikinews quoted Bass as saying.

The Associated Press says police are trying to determine exactly who edited Benoit's Wikipedia page.

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