$2 million bond set for Aurora woman accused of hiding charred human remains in her closet

AURORA, Colo. — A $2 million bond has been set for an Aurora woman on three new charges in connection with the charred human remains found in one of her apartment closets in late May.

Alexis Tanielle Nelson initially faced charges of attempting to influence a public servant on May 30 after Nelson’s mother called police to request a welfare check on her 5-year-old grandaughter Maha Li Hobbs, who was reported missing, according to an arrest affidavit in the case.

Police said Nelson told them she had given the child up for adoption and she did not want the grandmother to know where the child was. However, police could not connect Nelson or Maha to the agency that she claimed to have used for the adoption.

Investigators searched through her phone and could not find any emails to an adoption agency. She also did not have any photos of the missing child, the affidavit read.

No Colorado courts — or the Arapahoe County Department of Human Services — had any record on file of an adoption involving Maha.

The child was reported missing on May 30 from the Aurora area and was said to likely be with Nelson, who is her primary caretaker.

While talking with Aurora police officers on May 30, Nelson agreed to a search of her apartment. They found an empty child’s room with a dirty carpet, according to the arrest affidavit.

With a search warrant, officers looked through Nelson’s cell phone further and found two Google searches in her history — one for “Can you overdose from melatonin?” and “Can you overdose from Xanax?”

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That’s when Nelson was arrested for attempting to influence a public servant. Nelson’s bond was set at $100,000 cash or surety during her court appearance June 1.

Meanwhile, the Aurora Police Department’s investigation into the missing girl continued.

On May 31, detectives obtained a search warrant for Nelson’s apartment in hopes of gathering evidence that would lead to the missing child, with help from detectives on APD’s Crimes Against Children Unit.

Shortly after they entered the apartment, a detective opened a utility closet on the patio of the apartment and recognized the odor as decomposing flesh, according to the affidavit. The closet was filled with children’s items and a plastic bag inside a large shopping bag.

In the wake of May 31’s discovery, new charges were added against Nelson on June 1, including child abuse resulting in death, tampering with a dead human body and tampering with physical evidence, police said.

During a press conference on June 1, APD Interim Chief Art Acevedo said Nelson will likely face a murder charge in the near future as well, adding that the department is “highly confident” the remains belong to Nelson’s daughter, 5-year-old Maha.

Nelson will appear in court next on August 28 for a preliminary hearing.