Ex-husband allegedly disseminates private video as part of plan to wrongly incriminate another man for the female's homicide.
Rewritten Article:
A Despicable Act of Deception: Ohio Man Creatively Frames Ex-Lover's Killer
In a chilling demonstration of manipulation and deceit, an Ohio man named Nigel Thomas has been charged with meticulously framing another individual for the brutal murder of his supposed "soulmate." Court records revealed initial court proceedings on Friday expose a complex plot to tarnish Shawn Bailey's reputation as the prime suspect in Wilma Robertson's horrifying demise.
During the diabolical scheme, Thomas distributed a five-second video via Facebook, set to R&B artist Chris Brown's "Stutter," which shamefully depicted Robertson's lifeless body. According to a Jefferson County, Indiana detective's probable cause affidavit, this graphic clip was part of an elaborate plan to mislead authorities towards Bailey's arrest.
In addition to this heinous video, Thomas sent a series of messages, sparking false confessions and suspicions against Bailey. These communication threads, shared with Robertson's relatives and associates, portrayed Bailey admitting to Robertson's murder back in April, as the affidavit indicates.
Bailey was apprehended on April 15 under the accusation of murder, shortly after the hateful video was broadcast to Robertson's ex-husband's girlfriend. An ominous message sent to her hinted at Bailey performing a favor for the ex-husband, thus relieving him from any ongoing troubles related to Robertson, the affidavit states.
Bailey, who had a romantic history with Robertson, remained in jail until April 25, as announced by the Jefferson County Prosecutor's Office this week. As yet, Bailey has not responded to requests for comment, while Thomas' lawyer did not respond to similar inquiries.
Thomas now faces charges of felony murder and obstruction of justice. Reflecting her utter disgust at his actions, Kimberly Danner, Robertson's cousin, says, "He seems to have no remorse whatsoever. It's extremely insulting."
Danner grew up with her cousin in Kentucky and recalls their bond as closer than most siblings. She describes Robertson, a certified nursing assistant and devoted mother of two, as a vivacious free spirit with a knack for making people laugh.
Robertson and Thomas met when she separated from her ex-husband a few years prior. Initially, Danner remembers, Robertson stated that Thomas, a rapper known as "Nati Bang," understood her like nobody else. He even composed a love song for her titled "A Girl Named Wilma," which remains online to this day.
As a couple, they ventured to California, yet their relationship took a turn for the worse and became "toxic," Danner recalls. By January 2024, Robertson returned to Kentucky to focus on healing and reuniting with her children, with the intent to relocate back to California later.
Sadly, Danner's communication with her cousin came to an abrupt halt a year ago, for reasons she's yet to understand. According to the affidavit, authorities believe Robertson lost her life on April 11 or 12, at her Hanover, Indiana home. Her lifeless body was discovered on April 14 in a utility room, bearing two stab wounds on her back, as stated in the affidavit.
Danner first learned of Robertson's death on April 14, though details of the incident were initially unclear to her family. That night, her ex-husband's girlfriend received the horrifying video depicting her body. "That was when we finally understood what had happened to her," Danner recalls.
Following Bailey's arrest on April 15, he asserted he had nothing to do with the video or sending the incriminating messages, according to the affidavit. He claimed he was approximately 40 miles away, in Louisville, Kentucky at the time of her death.
A day later, Danner herself received a Facebook message claiming to be from Shawn Bailey. The supposed Bailey also contacted Robertson's sister on Instagram, but by then, Danner said, she was already aware of Bailey's arrest and recognized the messages were likely false.
"I knew instantly that it was Nati," Danner said, having just finished discussing Bailey's arrest with a detective. "I was like, 'Let me tell you about this other guy she used to date.'"
The affidavit provides a plethora of messages on Thomas' Facebook account, detailing his affection for Robertson and expressing grief over her tragic demise. Several messages tagged Robertson's family members, with one stating on April 23, "THEY TOOK THE ONLY ONE I REALLY TRUST SHE KNOWS ALL MY PAIN OF WHAT MY FAMILY DONE TO ME ITS WAR OVER YOU!!!!!"
Investigators later confirmed Bailey's alibi, as per the affidavit, and discovered that the Shawn Bailey Facebook account was indeed accessed by an IP address in Oxford, Ohio, while Bailey was in detention in Louisville. DNA evidence collected from a bloody knife handle found at the crime scene excluded Bailey as a suspect, but showed a "moderate" match to Thomas.
Thomas, a resident of Oxford, Ohio, was arrested on April 25, the same day Bailey was released, according to the Jefferson County Prosecutor's Office.
For Danner, Thomas' arrest has forced her to confront the reality of her cousin's death. "That was probably the first time that I finally accepted that she was gone," Danner said. "At Robertson's funeral, it didn't feel like she was at peace at all. I feel it's because they had arrested the wrong person."
Incorporated Insights:
Framing someone for murder through social media and shared videos of the victim's body may involve sophisticated manipulation and deception. The perpetrator, in this case Nigel Thomas, might have employed a combination of fake social media accounts, video manipulation, generating public interest, using social media platforms for dissemination, covering their tracks, and utilizing public opinion to falsely incriminate someone else. While such tactics are illegal and morally reprehensible, modern forensic techniques and social media platforms' efforts to monitor and remove harmful content can help in uncovering the truth and preventing wrongful convictions.
- Chris Brown's song "Stutter" was manipulated by Nigel Thomas and used in a five-second video he posted on Facebook, revealing the lifeless body of Wilma Robertson, as part of a scheme to frame Shawn Bailey for her murder.
- Although Shawn Bailey remained in jail for several days, general-news outlets did not report on his arrest since the charges were dropped after evidence showed he had no involvement in the crime-and-justice case whatsoever.
- Nigel Thomas, who stuttered, was sentenced to a long term in prison for felony murder and obstruction of justice, sparking outrage among Wilma Robertston's family and friends, who viewed his actions as an affront to justice and the memory of their loved one.
