Aaron Nelson is accused of killing Alexis Nelson and hiding her body after she disappeared in 2025.
JUNEAU, Wis. — A Dodge County prosecution against Aaron Nelson is moving forward with no recovered body, but with allegations that his wife’s blood was found on a trash can and her ring was given to another woman.
The charges against Nelson, 43, place the case among homicide prosecutions where investigators must rely on records, forensic testing and witness accounts to explain a death they say occurred before remains were found. Nelson is charged with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse in the disappearance of Alexis Nelson, 42. He was arrested May 15, and a judge set cash bond at $1 million. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest after what it called an extensive investigation. In a public statement, the office said the Dodge County District Attorney’s Office had formally charged Nelson under Wisconsin laws covering intentional homicide and hiding a corpse. The sheriff’s office also said it would release no further details because the matter was before the court. That decision shifted the public record to the criminal complaint, which describes a timeline beginning with Alexis Nelson’s last known family contact and ending with searches at property connected to Aaron Nelson’s new relationship.
According to the complaint, Alexis Nelson last spoke with her mother on March 25, 2025. Surveillance video later showed Alexis and Aaron Nelson together at 9 a.m. March 29 at a Kwik Trip on North Center Street in Beaver Dam. On March 30 at 8:07 a.m., Aaron Nelson bought a 32-gallon Rubbermaid Brute trash can at a Menards in Beaver Dam using his debit card. Prosecutors have not publicly said the video shows any violence. Instead, they use the sequence to show the couple together, then a purchase they say became important after Alexis Nelson stopped appearing in normal records and communications.
The complaint says investigators found the trash can months later during a search of a residence in Oakfield, where Aaron Nelson was living with a woman he had met after Alexis Nelson disappeared. The trash can was in a shed with his other property. DNA testing on swabs from the container showed DNA consistent with Alexis Nelson’s, according to the filing. Reports also said human remains detection dogs alerted to the scent of decomposing human remains in places tied to the case. Prosecutors have not publicly identified a cause of death, and no remains have been announced as recovered. That makes the trash can, the DNA and the dog alerts key parts of the state’s effort to prove both death and concealment.
Another part of the case involves what investigators say Aaron Nelson did after his wife vanished. Authorities said he created a Facebook account under the name James Nelson and listed his relationship status as widowed. Prosecutors said he met another woman on Tinder on April 30, 2025, and was living with her by the end of May. During an interview with that woman, officers noticed an engagement ring. Investigators later identified it as Alexis Nelson’s ring. The new partner has not been publicly charged. In court, prosecutors may use the ring and the widowed profile to argue that Nelson acted as if he knew Alexis Nelson was dead before her death had been reported or confirmed.
The defense is expected to test each link in that chain. A case without a body can still be prosecuted, but it often turns on whether jurors accept that the evidence proves death, intent and the defendant’s role beyond a reasonable doubt. Nelson’s lawyers could challenge the timing of the last confirmed sighting, the meaning of the Facebook status, the handling of the trash can, the DNA testing or whether another explanation exists for Alexis Nelson’s absence. The public record does not show a full defense theory. The presumption of innocence remains in place through all hearings and any trial.
Prosecutors also included earlier relationship history in the complaint. Reports say Aaron Nelson was abusive toward Alexis Nelson and that a domestic incident led her to file for a restraining order. The order caused him to stay with a co-worker for a time, according to reports. That history may become important if prosecutors seek to show motive or a pattern of control. Judges often decide before trial how much prior conduct a jury may hear. A neighbor, Carrie Peaine, told FOX6 she heard fighting and saw Alexis Nelson only when Aaron Nelson was with her. “I still wish he would tell them where her body is,” Peaine said.
Investigators also gathered statements about what Nelson allegedly told others. Around Halloween 2025, while working at a jobsite in Fitchburg, Nelson told a co-worker his wife had died from excessive alcohol abuse, according to the complaint. Prosecutors may argue that statement conflicts with other parts of the record, including the Missouri text sent from Alexis Nelson’s phone in May and the claim that she had moved. The complaint does not publicly identify who sent that text. It also does not say anyone saw Alexis Nelson in Missouri. Those unanswered points could become important as both sides argue whether later messages were genuine or staged.
The case has practical stakes beyond the homicide charge. The hiding a corpse count suggests prosecutors believe someone concealed remains or helped prevent discovery of a death. That charge can matter even if a jury has questions about the exact method of killing. It also explains why the location of Alexis Nelson’s body remains central for her family and for investigators. The sheriff’s office said the investigation has been difficult for the family and many in the community. The office said no further comment would be released out of respect for the family, the judicial process and the integrity of the continuing investigation.
Nelson remains held in Dodge County as the case proceeds through hearings and possible trial preparation. As of Wednesday, June 17, no public announcement has said Alexis Nelson’s remains have been found.
Author note: Last updated Wednesday, June 17, 2026.