The mystery surrounding the death of professional wrestler Chris Benoit has deepened after it emerged that the star’s Wikipedia entry was edited to mention his wife’s death hours before authorities discovered the bodies of the couple.

Investigators believe that Benoit – who was one of wrestling’s leading figures - strangled his wife and seven-year-old son over the weekend, placing Bibles next to their corpses before hanging himself on the cable of a weight-machine in his home in suburban Atlanta. No motive has yet been identified.

Now, in a further twist, it has emerged that news of the death of his wife, Nancy, was made public by Wikipedia users in the US and Australia around 14 hours before the official discovery of the bodies on Monday at 2.30pm local time.

The wrestler’s page on the reference website – which allows users to add and edit information - was altered twice early on Monday. The first entry, posted at 12.01am, claimed that the wrestler had missed a match two days earlier because of his wife’s death.

The posting read: “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.”

Soon afterwards, the claim was removed by a moderator, who wrote: "Need a reliable source. Saying that his wife died is a pretty big statement, you need to back it up with something."

An hour later though, a second user posted further details about the match which Benoit missed, saying… "which according to several pro wrestling websites is attributed to the passing of Benoit's wife, Nancy."

Cary Bass, an official from Wikipedia, said that the first entry was made by someone using an internet protocol address registered in Stamford, Connecticut, where World Wrestling Entertainment is based. The second user was traced to a computer connected to the internet via Australian provider Unwired.com.au. According to reports, that computer is said to be in Sydney.

"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," Mr Bass said.

However, in a further development, the anonymous user based in the US has since contacted Wikipedia, insisting that their mysterious posting was the result of speculation alone and nothing more than a “terrible coincidence”.

In a posting to Wikinews made this morning from the same IP address, the user apologises for the comment, saying: “I am here to talk about the wikipedia [sic] comment that was left by myself. I just want to say that it was an incredible coincidence… I was reading rumours and speculation about this matter online, and one of them included that his wife may have passed away.

“I wish not to reveal my identity so I can keep me and my family out of this since they have nothing to do with anything. I am not connected to WWE or Benoit at all in anyway…I am just an everyday individual who posted a wrongful remark at the time that received so much attention because it turned out to actually happen…I hope this puts an end to this speculation that someone knew about the tragedy before it was discovered.”

The person goes on to say they “feel terrible” about the furore caused by the posting. “Hearing about my message becoming a huge part of the Benoit slayings made me feel terrible as everyone believes that it is connected to the tragedy, but it was just an awful coincidence…let this end this chapter of the Benoit story, and hopefully one day we will find out why this tragedy ever actually happened.”

Meanwhile, federal drug agents have carried out a raid at the offices of Benoit’s doctor, to seize records and other relevant items, according to reports.

The raid came amid speculation into whether steroids played a role in the murders and subsequent suicide. The Associated Press reported that anabolic steroids were found in Benoit’s home. But yesterday, Vince McMahon, owner of World Wrestling Entertainment, insisted that conclusions should not be made “until toxicology tests are completed”.

In the days before the killings, Benoit and his wife argued over whether he should stay home more to take care of their mentally ill son, said a lawyer for the WWE wrestling league, according to AP. The child suffered from a rare medical condition called Fragile X Syndrome, an inherited illness often accompanied by autism.

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