Alabama man who tried to bury alive man wanted in Tennessee murder

A 45-year-old man who was arrested more than 15 years ago in Elmore County for attempting to bury a person is wanted in Tennessee in connection with a homicide investigation.

Nicholas Wayne Hamlett is wanted for first-degree murder and is considered armed and dangerous, according to an alert issued Friday by Monroe County, Tennessee, Sheriff Tommy Jones.

He has ties to Alabama, Montana, Tennessee, Alaska, Kentucky and Florida and was previously charged and wanted for a parole violation in Alabama, according to Tennessee authorities.

Hamlett goes by several aliases and is said to be 5’7″ tall and weigh 170 pounds. Authorities said Hamlett’s whereabouts are unknown at this time and if you see him, do not approach him and call 911 immediately.

Monroe County 911 received a transferred call around 11:34 p.m. on Oct. 25 from dispatchers about a poor hiker claiming to be a man named “Brandon Andrade” who had fallen off a cliff while fleeing a bear. The caller told authorities he was injured and partially in the water. Authorities were able to locate the incident in a rural area about 80 miles northwest of Chattanooga.

Emergency personnel and search and rescue found the man, identified as Andrade, dead and transported the body to the Knox County Regional Medical Examiner’s Center. Detectives from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and the county’s Violent Crimes Task Force examined the scene and determined the body did not match Andrade’s ID.

Authorities learned that Andrade’s ID was stolen and used repeatedly by Hamlett.

They believe that Hamlet could be involved in the death of the unknown.

Hamlett was previously arrested in 2009 in connection with an incident in Elmore County in which he held a Prattville man at gunpoint and tried to hit him with a baseball bat before buying him in rural Coosada, according to court records.

According to initial reports of the incident, Hamlett used the name Joshua Jones when he approached the victim so “he could get insurance.”

In 2012, Hamlett was charged with attempted murder and kidnapping and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2012. According to court documents, he was previously convicted four times.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, along with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies, were working to locate Hamlet and get more information about the dead man, who has not yet been identified.

The dead man is currently known as John Doe. Special agents from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation are currently working on a sketch of John Doe to be released for identification.

The incident remains under investigation and more information will be released at a later date, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said.