A Wisconsin man has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse after allegedly killing his wife, updating his Facebook status to 'widowed', and giving her wedding ring to a new fiancée he met on Tinder, authorities said.
Aaron Nelson, 43, was arrested on Friday in connection with the disappearance of his wife, Alexis Nelson, 42, who was last seen on surveillance footage with him at a Kwik Trip store in Beaver Dam on March 29, 2025. Family members reported her missing in May 2025 after losing contact.
According to court documents, Nelson met a woman on Tinder on April 30, 2025, and by the end of May they were dating and living together. Prosecutors allege that Nelson purchased a 32-gallon trash can the day after his wife vanished, which was later recovered at the fiancée's property. A cadaver dog alerted near a shed where the bin was stored, indicating possible decomposing human remains.
Investigators discovered that Nelson created a new Facebook account under the name 'James Nelson' on April 2, 2025. When viewed in November, his relationship status was set to 'widowed'. The fiancée's engagement ring was identified as Alexis Nelson's original wedding ring, according to the criminal complaint.
Searches of the couple's former apartment and a storage unit uncovered blood matching Alexis's DNA and signs of human decomposition. Cellphone data showed Alexis's phone travelled to Sun Prairie shortly after she was last seen with her husband. Her body has not been found.
Neighbour Carrie Peaine told local media she often heard arguments from the couple's apartment and rarely saw Alexis without Aaron. 'I wish he would just tell 'em where her body is,' she said. Nelson appeared in Dodge County court on Monday, where a judge set his bond at $1 million cash. He is due back in court on May 28.
