A Houston, Texas man is facing a felony first-degree murder charge with deliberate intent in Sequoyah County District Court after authorities responded to a disturbance call on Monday and found a Muldrow woman deceased from an apparent stab wound.
District 27 District At-torney Jack Thorp said the charge was filed against Matthew W. Whitfield aka Summers, 34, on May 14, in the death of Nekaita R. Nance, 55.
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) Special Agent Christian Goode reported Muldrow Assistant Police Chief Brad Roberts requested OSBI assistance regarding Nance’s homicide after the department received a call regarding a domestic disturbance at 306 B Southwest 3rd Street.
According to the probable cause affidavit, the reporting party told police Whitfield was allegedly entering and exiting a residence, and was reportedly “acting” violent towards maintenance workers, who were working on an ajoining duplex.
When Muldrow police arrived, Whitfield was exiting Nance’s residence and when they asked him where Nance was, Whitfield said she was inside asleep. However, when law enforcement called her name and she didn’t respond, they conducted a welfare check and found her deceased inside the home with a stab wound to her neck.
When police attempted to detain Whitfield, he resisted and tried to pull away, forcing officers to tase him. OSBI was then called in to assist in processing the scene and interviewed Whitfield.
Goode said a search warrant was obtained for Nance’s residence where OSBI agents collected various pieces of evidence related to the investigation.
OSBI investigators said that Whitfield gave detailed information about Nance’s death, reportedly admitting to stabbing Nance twice, according to the affidavit. He also reportedly admitted to cleaning the knife that he stabbed Nance with before placing it in Nance’s kitchen.
Whitfield is currently being held at the Sequoyah County Detention Center without bail. He has pled not guilty to his charge and is scheduled for a 9 a.m. May 29 felony disposition docket before Associate District Judge Kyle Waters, according to court documents. Scott Hickman of Roland has been appointed as Whitfield’s attorney.
Whitfield is facing an additional criminal misdemeanor charge of obstructing an officer.
“I want to thank the Muldrow Police Department for their quick response and their work in this investigation,” Thorp said. “I’m also grateful to OSBI for their assistance and the effective interview of this defendant. With these agencies working together, sufficient evidence was gathered to charge Matthew Whitfield with murder.”
“Any loss of life is tragic, perhaps especially when caused by someone’s criminal actions,” Thorp said. “My office will continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to fight for justice for Ms. Nance.”
