Peter Raub was picked up on a murder warrant Tuesday after disappearing Oct. 31. That was the day the couple's children found the bloody body of Veronica Kuclo-Raub on her bed in the family's home. 

Kuclo-Raub was a practitioner of the Wicca religion. She owned a well-known local occult shop called Gundella's Witch Ways and was a highly visible local advocate for witches' rights. 

She and her husband, who was also a Wiccan, were last seen together on Oct. 30 at a Halloween party sponsored by the shop. No one saw Kuclo-Raub alive after she left the party. 

Couple had history of abuse

Police have released few details of the circumstances of the murder, which have been linked to domestic violence. Police spokesman Lt. Mel Maier confirmed that the couple had a history of domestic abuse and said Raub was convicted in 1996 for an incident of domestic violence. 

The couple had four children ranging in age from 4 to 14. 

He also said had police have determined the occult played no role in the deaths. 

"We have nothing that indicates that this was anything other than a domestic incident," he said. 

Followed in mother's footsteps

Kuclo-Raub was well-known in Garden City. She was a leader of the town's recycling effort and in December 1997 she got the town council to clarify a law that banned fortune telling so she would be allowed to use her crystal ball to entertain customers. 

A year later, she spoke out publicly against a local school district that sent a letter to parents saying that various kinds of witch symbols and clothing were dangerous and indicative of drug use and cult activity. 

"Kids need to be individuals," she told The Detroit News at the time. "They should be allowed to wear religious symbols. Unfortunately there has been a lot of fear associated with witchcraft. But you would hope that in the academic environment tolerance and understanding would be taught." 

Kuclo-Raub is the daughter of the late Marion Kuclo, a familiar Detroit area witch who was known as Gundella the Good Witch. A web site about Gundella said her family has been involved with witchcraft for generations in Scotland and the United States. 

Kuclo-Raub named her shop in honor of her mother. The shop has been closed since her death. 

Raub is now being held in a Los Angles jail on a murder warrant pending a positive identification and extradition back to Wisconsin, police said. 

By Todd Venezia, an APBnews.com staff writer (todd.venezia@apbnews.com).

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