Police: Daytona woman who killed, dismembered boyfriend is linked to similar cold case

DAYTONA BEACH — The Daytona Beach woman police said killed then dismembered her former boyfriend last summer is also a person of interest in a 10-year-old cold case involving the remains of a man dumped in the Tomoka River.

Police Chief Craig Capri on Friday, the day after her arrest on a charge of first-degree murder, called Nelci Tetley a "demented" woman who routinely abused her boyfriend for years before the killing.

It all came to a head in July 2017 — and police came upon the bloody, gory mess that was left behind.

"Something like this is not common," Capri said. "Just the amount of violence that was involved. Cutting his arm and legs off? I don't understand the purpose of that."

Most of Jeffrey Albertsman, 55, was found July 26, 2017 inside his home at 1222 North St. He died from a bullet wound to head and also had been shot once in the chest, according to a report. His arms and legs were found 20 miles away in a DeLeon Springs fernery, police said.

Albertsman's dismembered corpse was found almost 10 years after the chopped up body of Michael Scot Louis was found 10 miles away stuffed inside garbage bags along a riverbank.

Police are saying it might not be a coincidence.

Capri said Tetley is a "person of interest" in Louis' homicide, but referred all questions to the Ormond Beach Police Department.

Capt. Chris Roos, an Ormond Beach police spokesman, said Friday his agency had no updates to provide.

"The Louis case is an active investigation and we are not releasing any information at this time," Roos said.

Family members of Louis told The News-Journal in 2007 that Louis, who was 27 when he died, was dating a "much older woman" at the time of his death. Most of his body parts were found in Tomoka State Park.

Daytona Beach police responded to Albertsman's home six months ago after his mother contacted them saying she hadn't heard from Albertsman in a while. She, her husband and the victim's son showed up at the house and noticed a foul odor, according to a report.

Police knew as soon as they got to the scene that it wasn't good.

"The body was in there for about two weeks before us getting there," Capri said.

Detectives said they found blood evidence in one of the sinks in the home that matched Tetley. She had lived at the home for several years with Albertsman, but the two weren't living together when he was slain, according to police.

Capri said Tetley was interviewed by detectives, but she didn't admit to anything and was caught in "several lies." A police report stated that Tetley described her relationship with Albertsman as "bad" and she resented that he didn't love her even though she did so much for him.

Tetley also denied having keys to Albertsman's home, but investigators discovered at least two keys in her possession that unlocked Albertsman's front door, the report stated. During his media conference Friday, Capri said there were no signs of forced entry at the house when the body was discovered by police.

Capri provided no additional information about the discovery of Albertsman's limbs in the fernery, but The News-Journal reported in September that human bones had been discovered in a fernery off Daugharty Road in DeLeon Springs.

Capri said it is believed Tetley acted alone and that she cut apart the body post-mortem.

Louis' body also was found dismembered, but the body parts were in proximity to one another when they were discovered, authorities said. A fisherman initially found a leg and a foot on the bank of the Tomoka River. Police later found Louis' arms and torso. Louis was also decapitated but his head was never found.

Efforts to reach Louis' parents were unsuccessful.

Louis' sister, who was interviewed by detectives, said her brother had a different personality when he was with Tetley, adding that he abandoned his friends and became more "quiet and reserved" toward his family after his relationship with Tetley was established, according to a police report.

The same report revealed that human remains experts at the University of Florida noticed an "association" between the dismemberments of both Louis' and Albertsman's body based on the manner in which they were cut.

During her first court appearance Friday, a public defender was appointed to defend Tetley. The judge ruled to keep her jailed without bail.

Court documents show Albertsman and Tetley had clashes in the past.

On April 23, 2013, Albertsman drove himself to the hospital with a stab wound to his stomach. After he was treated and given X-rays, Albertsman told police he had been staying in a hotel for about a week because he was trying to leave Tetley. She followed him in her car and constantly called him on his cell phone, so Albertsman agreed to come home and talk to her, according to an arrest affidavit.

Once he stepped inside the apartment, Tetley sprayed Albertsman in the face with pepper spray and stabbed him with a kitchen knife, police said. Albertsman wrestled away the knife, got into his pickup and drove himself to the hospital, even though his eyes were irritated by the pepper spray, the affidavit stated.

Tetley was charged with aggravated battery. She pleaded no contest and received two years of community service followed by two years probation. Court records show that in 2013, Tetley was jailed on the accusation she violated her community service, but an order to dismiss that violation was filed and she was subsequently released from jail.

In October 2016, Albertsman filed an injunction against Tetley and accused her of striking him and threatening to kill him. Tetley was charged with misdemeanor battery in that case and Albertsman provided police with video that showed her attacking him, according to court documents.

About six weeks later, Tetley pleaded no contest to her battery charge. She received 11 months probation and was required to have no contact with Albertsman, records show. Less than eight months later, Alberstman was dead.

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