HANOVER, IN – An innocent man spent roughly ten days behind bars for a crime he did not commit while the actual perpetrator’s scheme to frame him unraveled with a twist of deceit involving fake social media accounts and incriminating videos, officials said.
Authorities were notified of Wilma Gayle Robertson’s death on April 15 after responding to a call for a welfare check at her residence on Hickory Drive. Robertson, 35, was discovered with fatal stab wounds to her back in her southeast Indiana home near Kentucky and Ohio.
Shawn Bailey, 33, hailing from Louisville, was initially arrested on suspicion of murder. Evidence appeared damning; he allegedly confessed and was in possession of a video depicting Robertson’s deceased body. In a confounding turn of events, an account using Bailey’s name had contacted Robertson’s ex-husband’s girlfriend with disturbing messages, including a graphic video clip.
The message, sent from a Facebook profile named “Shawn Bailey,” contained a macabre video alongside the unsettling background track of Chris Brown’s “Stutter.” The song lyrics ominously played while a second message ominously announced that Robertson’s partner need not worry about her anymore.
However, crucial DNA evidence steered the investigation in a new direction, exonerating Bailey and leading to the arrest of another suspect. Investigators identified the true culprit as Nigel Thomas, 34, of Oxford, Ohio, who allegedly orchestrated the detailed plan to frame Bailey by fabricating numerous social media presences in his name.
David Sutter, the Jefferson County Prosecutor, asserted that the investigation’s success hinged on the determined efforts of multiple agencies across three states. Their thorough and persistent pursuit of evidence revealed Thomas’s crimes and ultimately absolved Bailey of wrongdoing.
Nigel Thomas was apprehended and is currently detained in Ohio, awaiting extradition to Indiana to face charges. Further details regarding Thomas’s motive for the killing or his relationship with Robertson remain undisclosed.
Robertson, remembered fondly by those who knew her, was a vibrant presence on social media, where she often shared motivational content. She was a mother of two and worked as a certified nursing assistant, her life tragically ending in a web of deception spun by Thomas.
With Thomas’s arrest, Bailey was released from custody and cleared of all charges. The case stands as a stark example of the justice system’s relentless pursuit of truth, as emphasized by Sutter.