It started in June 2023 when Elsie Wiggington was reported missing. For more than a year, her family and friends were left in the dark, wondering what had happened to the 45-year-old nurse from Amherst, Virginia. Now, the horrifying truth has come out. Her remains were discovered buried under a concrete slab on the very property she shared with her husband, Frederick Wiggington Jr., who has now been convicted of her murder.
On May 2, the Amherst County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Frederick was found guilty of first-degree murder and using a firearm during the crime. The chilling discovery came on August 14, 2024, when investigators searched the couple’s property and found Elsie’s remains. At that point, Frederick, 37, was already facing charges for hiding a body, but now he’s looking at life behind bars.
Family members had long suspected something was wrong. When Elsie disappeared, she confided in her foster sister that she feared for her life. “He’s going to kill me,” she wrote in a text. She had been planning to leave Frederick and move to Maryland to start over, but she never made it out.
Court documents later revealed that Elsie had filed for divorce in 2020, accusing Frederick of cheating on her with his ex-wife, Patricia Wiggington. That divorce, however, never went through and was ultimately dismissed.
But that’s not where the story ends. Patricia is also in hot water. She’s facing criminal charges related to Elsie’s death. According to investigators, Patricia moved in with Frederick right around the time Elsie vanished. She allegedly lied to authorities about where Elsie was and is now facing charges, including obstruction of justice and being an accessory after the fact. She was released on bond in January 2025, but her legal troubles are far from over.
During the trial, a key piece of testimony came from an inmate at the Halifax County Adult Detention Center. The inmate said Frederick admitted to killing Elsie back in June 2023. Despite that, Frederick’s defense team argued the case was built on circumstantial evidence and tried to cast doubt on the timeline and testimony. But the jury didn’t buy it.
Elsie’s death left a huge hole in her community. She was a devoted mother of two and had spent nearly 30 years in nursing, most recently as the Director of Nursing at Fairmont Crossing Health and Rehab. Her obituary paints the picture of someone deeply committed to caring for others, someone who “doted on her grandchildren and devoted her time to members in her community who were in need.”
A GoFundMe page set up after her body was found echoed that sentiment, describing her as a kind soul taken far too soon. For many in Amherst, the case is a painful reminder that even the most trusted relationships can hide dark secrets.
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