Alexis Sharkey: Influencer’s husband found dead after being wanted over her murder

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday

Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US

Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US

SIGN UP

I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy

The husband of late social media influencer Alexis Sharkey was found dead on Tuesday in an apartment in Florida, a week after the authorities issued an arrest warrant for his alleged involvement in his wife’s death.

Thomas Sharkey, 50, succumbed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound and was found dead by officials of the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force who had reached the spot to arrest him, according to a report.

The apartment in Fort Myers where he was found dead belongs to his daughter, the report added.

Sharkey, believed to be the only suspect in his wife’s death, was served an arrest warrant on 29 September.

The corpse of the 26-year-old Instagram influencer was found in a naked condition on a highway in Houston last year on 28 November, following which Sharkey had fled Texas and moved to Georgia. The couple was believed to have gotten into an argument and facing trouble around the time.

Investigators ruled the woman’s death as a homicide by strangulation.

Sharkey had said that he was cooperating with investigators by keeping all communication channels open. Investigators said that he did not hand over a DNA sample needed for the probe, according to the New York Daily News.

Shortly after his wife’s death, Sharkey said that he was receiving death threats from some people who followed the 26-year-old on social media. Alexis’s fans had also accused Sharkey of foul play in the influencer’s death who was found dead two days after she went missing.

“It’s horrible. People are talking tons of crap. I’m getting death threats and stuff,” he said.

He had claimed that his wife “wasn’t happy” and “was stressed,” but that he was “the one holding her, cuddling her, and building her back up”.

“She wasn’t happy. She was stressed. I would cuddle her to try to make her strong. She was an amazing woman. Sir, my wife was an amazing woman. She really was. There’s always other sides to everything. I was the one holding her, cuddling her, and building her back up,” he said.

“I don’t need to set the record straight. I’ll let it play out the way it is. I know what my life was with my wife.”