A middle school gym teacher who was behind bars for repeatedly raping a 15-year-old girl was murdered by an inmate in his North Carolina cell Sunday, October 5. 60-year-old Ernest Nichols, described himself as a “pig,” was convicted in 2011, according to the New York Post. He was sentenced to 15 years behind bars for statutory rape. Nichols was originally arrested on 27 charges, including a list of sex offenses, per WRAL.
The prison was sent into a lockdown after Nichols was found murdered. He was found dead in his cell at the Greene Correctional Institution in Maury, North Carolina, around 6:50 am.
Inmate Wilbert Baldwin has now been served a murder warrant by the Green County Sheriff’s Office. He is already serving a sentence for second-degree murder.
Who was Ernest Nichols?
Nichols worked at Ranson Middle School in Charlotte for as many as 14 years. After the allegations were made, he was suspended without pay and banned from the grounds, as reported by WBTV.
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Nichols’ victim, who was not a student at the school, alleged that she was raped several times over a six-month period in 2008. She accused Nichols of impersonating his own son on Facebook and MySpace.
The victim accused Nichols of sending her sexually explicit messages. He also made inappropriate requests to her, asking her to make up sexual stories and letting him know “whenever she entered the shower,” an arrest warrant revealed.
At times, Nichols would watch the girl have consensual sex with another male. He demanded that she tell people “she wanted” to have sex with him if anyone asked about their encounters. Their encounters took place at Nichols’ family’s home, according to the warrant.
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The warrant also stated when the teenager’s mother confronted Nichols about the abuse, and during the conversation, he called himself a “pig.” Nichols was finally arrested in October 2009 at his home. Cops found videotapes, a video camera, photographs and sex toys on his property, and seized them.
Nichols refused to cooperate with the judge during his hearing. On being asked to enter a plea, he insisted that he was not a “straw man” and claimed that he did not understand the charges he was facing. Nichols was scheduled to conclude his sentence in September 2027.
