Accused Identity Thief Who Called 911 and Allegedly Staged Fake Bear Attack Arrested on Suspicion of Murder: Authorities

Nicholas Wayne Hamlett was arrested in South Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 10, in connection with the Oct. 18 murder of Steven Douglas Lloyd in a complex case of identity theft

• The man police believe killed Steven Douglas Lloyd allegedly called 911 with a fake name late on the night of Oct. 18, claiming that he was an injured hiker who had fallen off a cliff while running from a bear, per a series of sheriff's press releases
  
  
• Police found a dead man with identification matching the name provided by the caller 
  
  
• That identification card – which belonged to neither the caller nor the dead man – led police on a murder investigation that crossed state lines

A man allegedly befriended another, lured him into a wooded area in Tennessee, killed him, stole his identity and then, calling 911 with a fake name – Brandon Andrade – told police he was an injured hiker who had fallen off a cliff while running from a bear, per a series of sheriff's office press releases. 

Law enforcement dashed to the location of the supposedly injured hiker and found a dead man. But the police later discovered that neither the dead man nor the 911 caller was Andrade, according to Monroe County Sheriff Tommy J. Jones II.

Nicholas Wayne Hamlett “used a false name when speaking with law enforcement,” according to a Monroe County Sheriff’s Office press release. 

The 45-year-old Hamlett was arrested in Columbia, S.C., on Sunday, Nov. 10, after being recognized at a hospital there, according to the sheriff. Hamlett is charged with first-degree murder in Monroe County, Tenn., and a parole violation in Alabama, per the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

Hamlett’s true identity was verified through his fingerprints, according to law enforcement.

With court closures for Veteran’s Day, it was not immediately clear if Hamlett had entered a plea or retained a lawyer.

The Monroe County E-911 Center in Tennessee received the 911 call from the a man claiming to be Andrade at 11:34 p.m. Oct. 18, per the sheriff’s office.

The caller claimed that he was injured and partially submerged in water.

Law enforcement traced the call to the Charles Hall bridge on the Cherahola Skyway in Tellico Plains, Tenn. There, they found a dead man with an ID in the name of Brandon Kristopher Andrade. The body was taken to Knox County Regional Forensic Center.

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But over the course of their investigation, Monroe County law enforcement determined that the dead man was not Andrade and that the identification found on his corpse had been stolen and used repeatedly, per the sheriff’s office.

Tracing back the use of that identification, law enforcement put out a wanted poster for Hamlett, whom they had determined had already fled from his Tennessee residence.

Hamlett, whose list of aliases also included “Nic Hamlett,” had previously been charged in Alabama on allegations of attempted murder and parole violation, according to a wanted poster issued by the U.S. Marshals. (It was not immediately clear the disposition of that previous case.) 

He was described to have ties to Tennessee, Montana, Alaska, Kentucky, North Carolina and Florida and to travel under aliases, per the wanted poster.

The corpse was later identified as that of 34-year-old Steven Douglas Lloyd of Knoxville, Tenn.

Lloyd grew up as a foster child who had later been adopted, according to Monroe County Sheriff Jones. He “suffered from trust issues and had been diagnosed with a mental health disorder known as Reactive Attachment Disorder,” said Sheriff Jones in a press release.

The disorder is “a rare but serious condition in which an infant or young child doesn't establish healthy attachments with parents or caregivers,” according to the Mayo Clinic, which identifies among its symptoms “unexplained withdrawal, fear, sadness or irritability,” “not seeking comfort or showing no response when comfort is given,” and “failing to seek support or assistance.”

The disorder can continue into adulthood.

Lloyd periodically left home to live on the streets, while still staying in touch with family, according to Sheriff Jones, who described him as a man who “loved the outdoors and was so helpful when it came to others.”

Sheriff Jones said that Lloyd had trusted Hamlett, that the two had become friends and that he had been lured into the woods before Hamlett took “Steven's life and his identity.”