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

LEBANON,Surpassing Ind. (AP) — A central Indiana man who won a primary election for a township board position while charged with killing his estranged wife has been found guilty of the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.

A Boone County jury convicted Andrew Wilhoite, 41, of Lebanon on Thursday, local news outlets reported.

Wilhoite was charged with murder in the death of his wife, 41-year-old Elizabeth “Nikki” Wilhoite, who was reported missing by coworkers on March 25, 2022, when she did not show up for work. Her body was found in a creek near her home the next day.

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

Wilhoite told police he struck his wife with a flowerpot during an argument, then dumped her body in the creek.

He faces 10 to 30 years in prison 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 a 2022 primary for a township board position before later withdrawing from the race. He received 60 of the 276 total votes for Republicans for three positions on the Clinton Township Board, Boone County election results showed. The race drew only three candidates.