The Marlisa Wells and Matthew Wilkins murder will be featured on the TV One documentary show Fatal Attraction . The new episode premiered for the first time on television last week, but will be re-aired tonight. Marlisa Wells was a 16-year-old honor student who was killed in her home by her boyfriend, Matthew Wilkins, because he didn’t want to have a baby with her.
The Marlisa Wells case was in the news in January in 2008, when her dead body was discovered in a downstairs bathroom at her home in Austell, Georgia. The body was discovered by her grandparents, who were returning home from a funeral that cold winter day. Marlisa Wells’ grandmother, Charlotte, had a feeling something was wrong that day, which is why she rushed back to check on her. But as the couple arrived, they found Marlisa’s body lying in a pool of blood with a fork still stuck in the middle of her back. Her grandparents and neighbors were beside themselves with grief, according to the Marietta Daily Journal.
Everyone in the neighborhood wondered what could have possibly happened to such a bright, good Christian girl. Many speculated that it could have been a home invasion. But, as police investigated the case, they came across information that suggested that Marlisa Wells was leading a double life.
They learned that the day Marlisa was killed she had invited her boyfriend over to her grandparents home to have sex and to discuss her pregnancy. By all accounts, Matthew Wilkins (sometimes spelled Mathew Wilkins) was a good student and athlete who was planning to go to college on a basketball scholarship. Instead of concentrating on his studies, he divided his time between Marlisa and another girl that he was dating.
He kept the relationship with Marlisa hidden. And when Covenant Christian Ministries student Marlisa broke the news to him that she was pregnant with his child, he came up with a plan to get rid of her and the baby.
Matthew Wilkins knew that his parents would have never accepted him being a father at age 19. And they would have been livid to find out that he had thrown away his chance at college.
The day Matthew went to Marlisa’s home, he had sex with her, and then beat and stabbed her to death. Marlisa fought for her life as she ran throughout the home in an effort to get away from her attacker. But, Matthew Wilkins cornered her in a downstairs bathroom and slammed her head against the toilet before making his escape.
Matthew Wilkins denied killing his girlfriend, but the investigation revealed that he had told his friends that he was not ready to be a father. Despite Wilkins’ attempt to cover over his vicious crime, police matched evidence from the crime scene to evidence found in the home of Matthew Wilkins’ parents. He was arrested and charged with her death.
Today, family members are still saddened by her untimely death but say they have forgiven her killer. Marlisa Wells died for nothing. Her autopsy report showed that she was not pregnant at the time of her murder. It is unclear if Marlisa told Matthew she was pregnant in an effort to keep him as a boyfriend or whether she really believed that she was pregnant. Prosecutors asserted that irregular periods may have been a factor. In 2010, a Cobb County jury found Matthew Fredrick Wilkins guilty of murder and sentenced him to life plus 20 years in prison. The Marlisa Wells case is similar to the case of pregnant teen Arrijana Hill, who was brutally killed by her teen boyfriend, Ryan Matthews. That Fatal Attraction case was shown several weeks ago.
Here is tonight’s Fatal Attraction tease for Season 3: Episode 16 — Innocence Slaughtered .
“Bright and outgoing, 16-year-old Marlisa Wells was a young singer and songwriter who was destined for stardom. One day she met 20-year-old basketball star, Matthew Wilkins, who charmed his way into her heart and promised a new life together. But their dreams of a future together are soon shattered as Marlisa is found stabbed to death over 60 times in the basement bathroom of her grandparents’ home. As investigators probe the case, secrets that were kept between the two unravel proving to be the likely motivation for her murder.”
Be sure to turn in to this fatal teenage love affair on the next episode of TV One’s Fatal Attraction airing Monday (5/4) at 10 p.m. ET.
[Photo Credit: Facebook , Georgia Department Of Corrections]