Police: New homeowner unhappy with house kills real estate agent, self
Not long after arriving at the small, single-story house in Portsmouth he reportedly bought “sight unseen,” 84-year-old Albert Baglione was seen wandering the cul-de-sac where it was located.
“He seemed a little off,” said Shane, who’s lived in the house next door for more than 25 years and asked to be identified only by his first name. “He just seemed out of it.”
That was last Thursday. The next time Shane saw his new neighbor was the next afternoon, when he saw Baglione unloading his belongings from a U-Haul moving truck in the driveway of the Bolling Road house.
A few hours later, Baglione was found dead inside. So was his real estate agent, 41-year-old Soren Arn-Oelschlegal of Norfolk. According to a news release issued by Portsmouth police, Baglione is believed to have killed Arn-Oelschlegal before turning the gun on himself.
Police were called to the house in the Shea Farms community about 6 p.m. Friday. When they spoke to Baglione, he had a weapon in his hand and told the officers he’d killed his Realtor, according to a release.
Baglione shut the door to his house and the officers heard a gunshot. When SWAT team members went in, they found Baglione and Arn-Oelschlegal dead.
Shane, the next door neighbor, said he talked to Baglione’s son afterward. The son said his father had moved from Alabama and bought the house “sight unseen” after discovering it in an online listing. He paid cash and didn’t see it in person until after he closed the deal.
Online records show the 750-square-foot house was purchased Oct. 4 for $160,000.
Arn-Oelschlegal, a longtime agent with Long & Foster Real Estate in Suffolk, had been Baglione’s agent. He posted about the sale on his professional Facebook page the next day, Oct. 5.
“Congratulations to my out of town buyer,” the post read. “I’m so happy I was able to find him a home that fit his needs.”
But when Baglione arrived two days later, he called his son and told him he was displeased with the house, Shane said. The Pilot was not able to locate Baglione’s son.
“He said it didn’t look the same as it did in the pictures,” Shane said. “He told his son he was unhappy and that he was going to talk to his agent about it.”
Arn-Oelschlegal’s ties to the real estate communities in the Outer Banks and Hampton Roads date to his childhood. His mother, B.J. Oelschlegal, owns Ocacroke Lightship Realty in Ocracoke and his father worked as a contractor and has a home-inspection business.
“He grew up in the business,” said Ruth Fordon, an agent at Lightship Realty who has worked with Oelschlegal’s mother for decades and first got to know Soren when he was about 8 years old.
“He used to come here (to the real estate office) after school and do his homework here,” Fordon said. Soren enjoyed tagging along with his mother whenever she had a house to show.
“He was a natural,” Fordon said. “He had the right personality for the job and people trusted him.”
Arn-Oelschlegal was dedicated to his work and “always went the extra mile” to please his clients, she said. “He was very professional and well respected by his colleagues,” Fordon said.
He also was active with Hampton Roads Pride and other LGBTQ organizations in the area, said Rudy Almanzor, president of Hampton Roads Pride.
“He was that person who always had a smile on his face, was always laughing and full of energy,” Almanzor said. “I never saw him unhappy.”
Long & Foster released a statement Wednesday, praising Arn-Oelschlegal for his work and offering condolences to his family and friends. Grief counseling is being offered to team members, the release said.
A memorial service for Arn-Oelschlegal will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday at Altmeyer Funeral Home’s Southside Chapel in Virginia Beach. The service also will be live streamed. A candlelight vigil is set for 7 p.m. Thursday outside The Wave club on Colley Avenue in Norfolk.
Jane Harper, 757-222-5097, jane.harper@pilotonline.com
