Indiana Man Nabs Victory In GOP Primary For Town Board While Awaiting Trial For Murder

At this point in American history, it’s pretty clear to the vast majority of us that the political system in our country has become nuttier than a Payday candy bar.

We’ve had a reality television star for president. I think that is a good summary of where we are at.

But just when you think you’ve seen it all and there’s nothing that could possibly shock you in the realm of politics, along comes an Indiana man, who as we speak is sitting in jail awaiting trial for the alleged murder of his cancer-stricken wife, who somehow managed to win the Republican primary to potentially hold an elected office.

And guess what?

That’s just the tip of the iceberg, baby.

There are apparently all kinds of bizarre things going on with this case, thanks in large part to the defendant’s mother’s connections to local politics.

Only in America.

Online court records say that Andrew Nathan Wilhoite, who is now 40 years old, is being charged with killing his wife, Elizabeth “Nikki” Wilhoite, then 41, both hailing from a rural section of Lebanon in Boone County, Indiana.

“Boone County is immediately northwest of Indianapolis. Online jail records maintained by the county sheriff indicate that Mr. Wilhoite was booked on March 26, 2022, and remains incarcerated pending trial,” Law & Crime reported.

However, Wilhoite’s current stint in the county jail wasn’t enough to prevent him from, somehow, pulling out a victory in the Republican primary for a seat on the town board in Clinton Township. At least according to information maintained on a county website.

“The election data says Mr. Wilhoite received 60 votes; two other candidates for the town board received 106 and 110 votes respectively. Three names are listed on the county’s vote tally, and the form says voters were directed to select three names for the office. Local reports indicate that no Democrats ran for the open seats,” the report said.

Boone County Superior Court Judge Matthew C. Kincaid found there was sufficient probable cause to charge Wilhoite for the murder of his wife on March 28, according to the criminal docket.

The case began to unfold when Mrs. Wilhoite disappeared back toward the end of March. A press release put out by the Boone County Sheriff’s Office stated that deputies began to look into the matter on Friday, March 25, after a co-worker called in to say that Mrs. Wilhoite “did not report to work.”

“An exhaustive search of the area with K-9 bloodhounds and deputies continued for several hours and we were not able to locate Nikki,” the department stated referring to their initial efforts. “The investigation eventually evolved into a possible homicide investigation.”

The sheriff then reached out to the Indiana State Police to ask for assistance.

“When our investigators realized this could be a possible homicide investigation, we wanted to do discuss the best way to move forward with the investigation since the mother of Andrew Wilhoite is a County Councilwoman, another county elected official,” stated Sheriff Michael T. Nielsen. “To avoid any conflict of interest, it was decided to contact the Indiana State Police and ask them to lead the investigation and we would assist them.”

The county website said the county council has “ultimate decision-making power regarding fiscal affairs” concerning operating budgets and salaries within county agencies, which also, presumably, includes the funding for the sheriff’s department.

“This is another prime example of working with our law enforcement partners to solve a horrendous crime,” the sheriff added. “I cannot be prouder of our Investigations team, Crime Scene Investigations team, the entire Sheriff’s Office staff, the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office and the Indiana State Police Investigators. Please keep all families and first responders in your thoughts and prayers.”

The sheriff’s office then pointed out that the state police arrested Mr. Wilhoite and that Mrs. Wilhoite’s body turned up in a creek just a few miles away from the couple’s home.

Kind of just screams “he did it,” doesn’t it? With the body found that close to home, things definitely don’t look good for Wilhoite’s future political aspirations.

The Indiana State Police then put out their own missive on the situation. The agency went on to indicate that it took over the investigation around 6:30 p.m. on March 25 due to “a potential conflict of interest” with the sheriff’s office’s ability to handle the “then-nascent” matter, according to Law & Crime.

“Boone County investigators had originally taken a missing person’s report earlier in the day and had taken to social media asking for the public’s assistance in locating” Mrs. Wilhoite, the ISP stated. “During the course of the investigation, detectives were able to determine that 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. He then placed her into a vehicle and drove to a nearby creek where he dumped her body.”

According to previous reports, Wilhoite was at home with his three kids when deputies started the search for the victim.

“According to several reports from Indianapolis FOX affiliate WXIN, Mrs. Wilhoite was battling cancer and had just wrapped up chemotherapy treatments when she disappeared. Citing court records, the television station said the defendant Wilhoite told responding deputies that he had ‘gotten in a fight the night before” with his wife and that she was “probably at her sister’s,” the report continued.

Local law enforcement officers reportedly discovered blood in the couple’s master bedroom and bathroom. They then found out the relationship between Wilhoite and his wife was not on the best of terms.

Given that he killed her, I guess that’s putting it rather mildly.

“Court records show that the victim had been seeking a divorce from her husband at the time of her death. On March 17, Mrs. Wilhoite submitted a petition for legal separation with children in Boone County Circuit Court. No action has occurred on that docket since a March 18, 2022 subpoena and summons was issued,” Law & Crime reported.

Officials with the state police then spoke with the press saying that its agents discovered the body of Mrs. Wilhoite around three in the morning on March 26, “partially submerged in approximately three feet of water.” According to online jail records, Mr. Wilhoite was then placed behind bars at 3:56 a.m. on the same date.

Court records that were cited by a report from the Kokomo Tribune said that the body of Mrs. Wilhoite was discovered in the exact location that Mr. Wilhoite told authorities to look for it.

Wilhoite went on to inform authorities that his wife had attacked him during a fight. The defendant was found to have scratches on his neck. The fight reportedly broke out when Mrs. Wilhoite found out that her husband had been cheating on her, according to records uncovered by the Lebanon Reporter.

This dude is a real bad apple, folks.

“The defendant reportedly told the police that he swung at his wife’s ‘face with a gallon-sized concrete flowerpot’ filled with dirt, the Lebanon Reporter continued. When Mrs. Wilhoite fell to the ground, the defendant said he threw her into his truck, took her to a bridge, and threw her over the side, the newspaper reported (again citing court records). The defendant allegedly said he tossed the concrete pot along the side of U.S. Route 52 as he took a load of corn to town. The defendant also allegedly told the authorities that he didn’t check his wife’s pulse after he struck her or before he put her in his truck,” Law & Crime stated in their report.

Concerning his primary victory, the Kokomo Tribune stated that Wilhoite can withdraw his name from consideration in the Clinton Township general election by June 15.

And here’s where this story takes yet another unbelievable turn. If he doesn’t yank his own name off the ballot, he can’t be kicked off of it. The defendant can actually remain on the ballot as a candidate and can even assume office while being charged with a crime.

Again, only in America.

However, if he is convicted of a felony, he will no longer be eligible to hold office under state law.

At least that’s what Brad King, the co-director of the bipartisan Indiana Election Division had to say when he spoke with the media.

We are living in crazy days.