George Mason University professor fatally stabbed by son in Vienna

VIENNA, Va. - Fairfax County Police are investigating a fatal stabbing amongst family members that took place in Vienna on Wednesday. 

Officials say 59-year-old Michael Buschmann was stabbed and killed by his 26-year-old son Axel Buschmann inside their home.

Michael Buschmann was a professor at George Mason University. According to the school's website, he served as the chair of the bioengineering department within the college of engineering and computing. 

During a press conference on Thursday, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said, "The investigation is ongoing. Terrible, terrible tragedy and we hope to get to the point where we share a motive. A dispute took place and a life was lost," he said. 

Chief Davis said around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday evening, Fairfax County Police received multiple 911 calls after neighbors spotted a man covered in blood walking shirtless down the street. The man who neighbors spotted, police say, was 26-year-old Axel Buschmann. 

He has been charged with second-degree murder. And has been released from the hospital after suffering from a torso stab wound. 

Chief Davis says there's a strong chance Axel's wound was self-inflicted. 

When officers arrived to the family's home in a gated neighborhood on Palace Green Way in Vienna, Virginia, they noticed two feet laying on the ground through a window. 

Once they opened the unlocked door, they discovered Michael Buschmann was dead with several cuts on his upper body. 

Download the FOX 5 DC News App for Local Breaking News and Weather

Police say no one else was inside the home when this deadly incident happened, but Michael Buschmann leaves behind his wife. 

George Mason University Vice President Paul Allvin says the campus is mourning and crushed by this shocking tragedy. Allvin said Michael stood out as an Eminent Scholar at the school.

"First and foremost was his relentless and inquisitive nature. Part of what made him such a brilliant scientist is he always wanted to know the answer to the next question," Allvin said. "He was a great teacher. His students, as we understand, really valued his classes and learned from him." 

In 2019, officers responded to the Buschmann family’s Vienna home for a non-domestic violence reason, but the police department did not disclose why.

According to Chief Davis, this is the 7th domestic homicide in Fairfax County, since January 2021, where an adult son murdered a family member.