An Indiana mom who went missing soon after finishing chemotherapy to treat her was found dead in a creek, according to police, who believe her husband is responsible for her murder.
Elizabeth ‘Nikki’ Wilhoite, 41, was reported missing to police by colleagues on Friday when she failed to show up for work. Law enforcement officials then searched the area around the couple’s rural Lebanon home, located about 30 miles north of Indianapolis.
Saturday morning, Nikki’s body was found in a creek near her home, the Boone County Sheriff’s Office said in a release. Officials had searched the area with bloodhounds for several hours before finding her body.
Court documents show Nikki had filed for separation from her husband, Andrew Wilhoite, last week.
Police believe Andrew hit his wife in the head during an argument, then drove her to the creek and dumped her body there.
‘During the course of a domestic dispute, 39-year-old Andrew N Wilhoite, Elizabeth’s husband, had allegedly struck her in the head with a blunt object causing her to lose consciousness,’ police said in a statement.
‘He then placed her into a vehicle and drove to a nearby creek where he dumped her body,’ police said.
Andrew has been arrested and charged with murder.
His wife’s body was found at about 3am, partially submerged under three feet of water in a creek several miles from the home she shared with her husband and children, according to police. Nikki had filed for divorce from Andrew on March 17, reported.
Nikki had completed her final round of chemotherapy within days of filing for separation.
‘This lady just finished her last round of chemo today . . . very proud of you,’ Andrew wrote on Facebook on March 18.
Indiana State Police led the search for Nikki to avoid any conflict of interest, as Andrew’s mother is a County Councilwoman, an elected official within the county.
Andrew remains held in the Boone County Jail. It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
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