Left: Nigel Thomas (Jefferson County Prosecutor’s Office). Right: Wilma Robertson (Morgan and Nay Funeral Centre).
An innocent man spent about 10 days in jail for a murder he did not commit after the real killer hatched an “elaborate plan to frame” the victim’s boyfriend that included creating fake social media accounts and sending out videos that showed her body, Indiana authorities say.
The Jefferson County Prosecutor’s Office said in a Facebook post cops responded on April 15 to complete a welfare check on 35-year-old Wilma Gayle Robertson at a home on Hickory Drive in Hanover, located in the southeast part of the Hoosier state near its borders with Kentucky and Ohio. When they arrived, they found Robertson dead from stab wounds to her back.
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Later that day, officers arrested 33-year-old Shawn Bailey of Louisville for murder. The evidence against Bailey, it seemed, was as concrete as it could get: He admitted to it and had a video of Robertson’s body. According to Bailey’s probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, Robertson’s ex-husband’s girlfriend received a Facebook friend request from an account under the name “Shawn Bailey.”
“Shawn Bailey” sent the woman two messages. The first was a 5-second video allegedly showing Robertson dead on the floor with the Chris Brown song “Stutter” playing in the background. The lyrics said “Got me trippin’ because you really f—k my head up.”
In the second message, “Bailey” allegedly wrote: “Tell her babe daddy that he doesn’t have to worry about her anymore and my bad for me and him getting in it over this b— me and him both got the same last name I did him a solid favor.”
But investigators later used DNA evidence to exclude the real Bailey of the crime. Instead, prosecutors say, the actual killer is 34-year-old Nigel Thomas of Oxford, Ohio, who goes by the name “Nati Bang.”
After stabbing Robertson, Thomas “engaged in an elaborate plan to frame” Bailey, including creating multiple social media accounts purporting to be Bailey admitting to the murder, according to Jefferson County Prosecutor David Sutter.
On Friday, cops arrested Thomas, dismissed charges against Bailey and set him free. Thomas’ arrest affidavit was not available and prosecutors did not release a motive for the crime nor detail his relationship with Robertson.
“The criminal justice system is ultimately a search for the truth. Multiple agencies across three states worked tirelessly in their pursuit of all investigative leads to uncover the crimes of Nigel Thomas and clear Shawn Bailey,” Sutter said.
Thomas is currently jailed in Ohio and waiting to be extradited to Indiana.
According to her obituary, Robertson was known to post videos on social media that were intended to encourage and inspire her followers. She had two kids and worked as a certified nursing assistant.
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