Wisconsin man charged with murder after wife Alexis Nelson goes missing and her body is not found
Alexis Nelson, 42, was last seen in May 2025 and her body has still not been recovered by authorities
A Wisconsin man has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide in connection with his wife's disappearance, despite her body remaining undiscovered more than a year after she was last seen.
The charges
The Dodge County Sheriff's Office announced on Monday that Aaron Nelson, 43, had been arrested in connection with his wife's disappearance.
The Dodge County District Attorney's Office formally charged him with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse. Nelson is currently being held in the Dodge County Jail, with his bond set at $1 million cash. He is scheduled to appear in court on 28 May.
Authorities stated that no further details would be released "out of respect for the family, the judicial process, and the continued integrity of the investigation."
Alexis Nelson's disappearance
Alexis Nelson, 42, was last seen in May 2025. Prosecutors allege that Nelson had been abusive towards his wife before her disappearance and that she had filed a restraining order against him following an alleged domestic incident.
A neighbour who lived near the couple's Beaver Dam apartment told WITI they had heard arguments coming from the home before Alexis went missing.
The couple were last seen together on surveillance footage at a Beaver Dam Kwik Trip on 29 March 2025, according to a criminal complaint cited by WISC.
Phone records allegedly showed Alexis' mobile phone subsequently travelling to Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, before Nelson purchased a 32-gallon bin the following day.
A new identity and a new relationship
Prosecutors alleged that shortly after Alexis disappeared, Nelson created a new Facebook account under the name "James Nelson" and listed his relationship status as "widowed," according to WISC.
He also allegedly met another woman on Tinder in April 2025 and had moved in with her by the end of May. Investigators later observed that the woman was wearing Alexis' wedding ring.
Key evidence
In June 2025, investigators executed a search warrant at the girlfriend's home, where they allegedly discovered a 32-gallon bin that later tested positive for Alexis' blood. A cadaver dog also alerted to a shed on the property where the bin had reportedly been stored.
The Dodge County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed there is no official documentation of Alexis Nelson's death within the state of Wisconsin.
Authorities first made a public appeal for information in February 2026, when the Dodge County Sheriff's Office and Beaver Dam Police Department announced they had been investigating her disappearance "over the last couple of months."
