Math Tutor Claims He Shot Wife's Lover In Self-Defense, But Prosecutor Says The Motive Was Jealousy

A popular math and physics tutor is accused of shooting his wife’s lover, but was it in a jealous rage or an act of self-defense?

Dusan Naumovic’s attorney doesn’t deny the 53-year-old shot and killed Vinicius Carneiro in his Virginia Beach home, but contends his client shot the man because he thought he was an intruder who had broken into the home in the middle of the night, according to The Virginian-Pilot.

Prosecutor Scott Lang has offered a different explanation, saying Naumovic shot and killed the man after discovering his wife of 24 years cheating on him in their home.

Naumovic, who has been charged with second-degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, claims he had been sleeping in his 16-year-old son’s bedroom when he awoke and heard a noise. The couple’s son is nonverbal and has autism and only sleeps in his own bed with parental supervision, WAVY reports.

Naumovic’s attorney, Mike Joynes, said Naumovic awoke around 3 a.m. and went to investigate, following the noises to his wife’s bedroom. According to Naumovic, he opened the door, turned on the light and shot at the man in the room five seconds later.

However, Lang questioned the alarm system in the family’s home, noting that it had not been activated until Sheri Naumovic pressed a panic button at 3:02 a.m. after Carneiro had already been shot. A video recorded by the system showed her pushing the button and then Naumovic approaching from behind and turning the alarm off. The couple called 911 three minutes later.

Dusan Naumovic has been charged with second-degree murder after prosecutors say she shot and killed Vinicius Carneiro, who was having an affair with his wife at the time. Photo: Virginia Beach Sheriff's Office

At a Thursday bond hearing for Dusan Naumovic, his wife said she wasn’t ready to testify about the activities that had occurred that night.

However, Naumovic said he had learned of his wife’s promiscuity in July after being told of the infidelities by one of his wife’s cousins. He claims he confronted his wife, who began to hit him multiple times. She was later arrested and charged with assaulting her husband and cousin.

Naumovic said his wife has schizophrenia, which can often lead to sexual promiscuity. After discovering information for four men she had been having an affair with in her phone, he claimed that he contacted each man, including Carneiro, and asked them to stop contacting his wife.

“I called them and asked them to stay away from her because she’s not well,” he said, according to the local paper. “I wanted them to be aware that she’s schizophrenic.”

His wife began treatment and Naumovic testified that he thought the matter was over “until this past Saturday,” WAVY reports.

A judge denied Naumovic’s request for bond in the case.