Police: Husband Of Murdered Texas Instagram Influencer Alexis Sharkey Shoots Himself Before Arrest
HOUSTON (CBSDFW.COM) — Police say the husband of a social media influencer whose body was found along a Texas highway in 2020 took his own life.
Officials in Houston confirmed on October 6 that Thomas Sharkey committed suicide when authorities attempted to execute an arrest warrant in connection with the death of his wife, Alexis Leigh Robinault Sharkey, who used the name "Alexis Sharkey" on Instagram.
Alexis Sharkey was found dead in Houston in the winter of 2020. It was more than a month after her body was found that authorities announced an autopsy showed Alexis had died from strangulation.
According to police, an arrest warrant was obtained for Thomas Sharkey last week. Houston police said Thomas was the only person who had the means, motive and opportunity to have committed the murder. During the course of the investigation officials learned that not only was there a divorce pending for the couple, but there was also a record of domestic violence in the household.
Police say U.S. Marshals found Thomas Sharkey in Florida on October 5, staying with a relative. According to officials, when Marshals entered the home the 50-year-old ran upstairs and shot himself in the head.
The U.S. Marshals officials statement said:
"The U.S. Marshals adopted a warrant for Thomas Sharkey, who was wanted out of Harris County, Texas, for murder. The U.S. Marshals Florida/Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force received a lead from the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Task Force in Houston that Sharkey was in the Fort Myers, Florida, area. U.S. Marshals located Sharkey at a residence in Fort Myers and later found him dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot inside of the residence."
Alexis Sharkey's naked body was found on the Interstate-10 service road -- about three miles from her apartment. The 26-year-old moved to Houston with her husband in January of 2020. She was last seen on the day after Thanksgiving at the home they shared.