Kriti Mehrotra
Investigative journalism and true crime documentaries are all the rage right now. Just the explanation of human behavior and experiences in itself is extremely intriguing, but when that gets added to the how and why of people go to horrific lengths to be selfish, the story becomes much more consuming and gripping. ‘Investigation Discovery’ or ‘ID’ has been bringing us such stories since 1996, and its coverage of the Lindey Wilkins’ Murder in ‘Dead Reckoning’ is just an engrossing.
How Did Lindsey Wilkins Die?
In Anderson, Indiana, on December 8, 2016, Lindsey Wilkins, 33, died of a gunshot wound to the right side of her temple in the 1000 block of West 1st Street. Her death was first reported as a suicide, but soon, when the gun could not be found anywhere at the scene of the crime it became more and more apparent that she was murdered. And the worst part, it was done in her home while her 8-year-old daughter was asleep in the other room.
There were no apparent marks on Lindey’s body, so it wasn’t a sexual assault gone wrong, but there was the appearance of a struggle because several pills were scattered around the bedroom floor where she was shot. According to all her friends and family, the murder itself was extremely unprovoked as Lindsey didn’t have any enemies and they couldn’t think of anyone who would have wanted to harm her to such an extent.
Who Killed Lindsey Wilkins?
Aaron Toller, a then 23-year-old, and Lindsey’s fiance was the first to report her death, and he was the one who claimed that it was a suicide. At that time, he was afraid of violating his probation, so he had admitted to hiding his two guns after discovering her body. Later on, he changed his statements and claimed that she was murdered by another person, so the police started suspecting him. Subsequently, during a polygraph test conducted by them, he was found to be less than truthful about the whole matter.
Out of the two guns that he had admitted to hiding, one was the murder weapon, and when his DNA was also found at the scene of the crime, he was arrested. All this was within a day of her death. When the investigation proceeded, the law enforcement officers also found text messages exchanged between the couple, which deprived him of a defense that would support his claim that Lindsey committed suicide. One by one everything fell into place and it became obvious that Aaron had killed her.
All the while he was on trial and awaiting his sentencing, though, he maintained that he was innocent. But, his behavior was parallel to someone who was guilty of committing a heinous crime – the lying, the hiding of evidence, and his inability to give proper facts and statements. Lindsey’s family members – her mother, her 3 brothers, and her daughter – all gave testimonies and impact statements in court against him. Apparently, Aaron had shot Lindsey because of another woman. He could have just left her and walked away, but he murdered her in cold blood.
It took 2 years, but Lindsey Wilkins finally got her justice when, on September 10, 2018, he was convicted on seven counts and was sentenced to serve a maximum of 70.5 years in jail. The minimum is 60 years. If he keeps good behavior while he is in prison, he can cut down on his sentence by more than 10 years. His charges were murder, neglect of a dependent, obstruction of justice, residential breaking and entering, false informing, and two counts of carrying a handgun without a license. (Featured Image Credit: Lindsey Wilkins / Facebook)
Read More: Where Is Aaron Toller Now?
