Man who won primary election while charged with murder convicted on lesser charge

LEBANON, Ind. — A Central Indiana man who won the primary election for a township board position while accused of killing his estranged wife has been found guilty of the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.

A Boone County jury convicted 41-year-old Andrew Wilhoite of Lebanon on Thursday, local news media reported.

Wilhoite was charged with murder in the death of his wife, 41-year-old Elizabeth “Nikki” Wilhoite, who was reported missing by colleagues on March 25, 2022, when she failed to show up for work. Her body was found the next day in a creek near her home.

She had filed for divorce on March 17 and had recently completed chemotherapy treatments for cancer.

Wilhoite told police he hit his wife with a flower pot during an argument and then dumped her body in the creek.

He faces a prison sentence of 10 to 30 years when he is sentenced on June 4.

One of his attorneys, Jennifer Lukemeyer, said she had no comment on the verdict.

Wilhoite was one of three Republican candidates who advanced in the 2022 primary for a township board position before later withdrawing from the race. He received 60 of a total of 276 Republican votes for three positions on the Clinton Township Board, Boone County election results showed. The race attracted only three candidates.