Investigators say he drove overnight from Columbus to Fortville, Indiana, picked her up early Jan. 6 and brought her back to Ohio.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WKRC) — A Columbus man who authorities say met a 17-year-old Indiana girl through online gaming has been federally indicted in her kidnapping, death and alleged dismemberment.
Tyler Nike Thomas, 39, faces nine federal counts tied to the disappearance and death of Hailey Buzbee, of Fishers, Indiana, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio announced.
The indictment alleges Thomas began communicating with Buzbee online when she was 15. Prosecutors said the two met while playing video games, including Roblox and League of Legends, and that Thomas began attempting to persuade her to engage in sexual activity in May 2024.
Buzbee disappeared after leaving her home in Fishers on Jan. 5. Investigators say Thomas drove overnight from Columbus to Fortville, Indiana, picked her up early Jan. 6 and brought her back to Ohio.
Federal prosecutors allege Thomas killed Buzbee during the course of the crimes.
Investigators reviewing Thomas’ cellphone data say he traveled to an Airbnb in Logan, Ohio, on the afternoon of Jan. 6. The next morning, his phone data placed him near the North Country Trail Trailhead in Wayne National Forest for about five hours, according to the indictment.
Tyler Nike Thomas, 39, faces nine federal counts tied to the disappearance and death of Hailey Buzbee, of Fishers, Indiana. Authorities say the Columbus man met the 17-year-old through online gaming has been federally indicted in her kidnapping, death and alleged dismemberment. (Fishers Police Department)Buzbee’s remains were later recovered in that area.
The indictment alleges Thomas tried to conceal the crime by decapitating, dismembering, burying and discarding Buzbee’s body. A forensic review of his phone also allegedly uncovered deleted communications with Buzbee, including Snapchat messages and sexually explicit images prosecutors say were taken at Thomas’ Columbus home and the Logan-area Airbnb.
Thomas was initially arrested on local charges in January. Those charges were dismissed after federal authorities took him into custody in February, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
He is charged with kidnapping resulting in death; traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor resulting in death; transporting a minor for criminal sexual activity resulting in death; sexual exploitation of a minor; attempted enticement of a minor; obstruction of justice; and accessing digital materials depicting child sexual abuse.
Some of the charges carry a possible penalty of life in prison or death if Thomas is convicted.
“Prosecutors from my office have worked diligently with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners over the past eight months to bring today’s charges forward, never losing sight of the pursuit of justice for Hailey Buzbee and her family,” U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II said in a statement.
