Nichol Olsen Case: Ruling, Disputed Evidence, and 911 Calls

The Nichol Olsen case refers to the January 10, 2019 deaths of 37-year-old San Antonio hairstylist Nichol Olsen and her two daughters, 16-year-old Alexa Montez and 10-year-old London Bribiescas, who were found shot to death inside the Anaqua Springs Ranch home of Olsen’s boyfriend, Charles Edward Wheeler. The Bexar County Medical Examiner ruled the daughters’ deaths homicides and Olsen’s a suicide, concluding she killed her children before killing herself. That ruling has been publicly disputed by the victims’ families, questioned in part by the Bexar County sheriff himself, and undermined by an investigation officials have conceded was flawed. No one has been criminally charged.

What Happened at Anaqua Springs

Olsen and her daughters were staying at Wheeler’s roughly 4,500-square-foot house in a gated community in northwest Bexar County. Wheeler told deputies he and Olsen argued the evening of January 9, that he left around 10 p.m. to stay with family, and that he returned the next morning. When no one answered his calls, he entered the house, found the three dead on the second floor, and called 911 around 9 a.m.¹

A responding deputy found Wheeler crying in the front yard. The three bodies were close together in an upstairs hallway and described as “cold and rigid to the touch,” indicating the deaths had occurred hours earlier.²

Autopsies showed Olsen and Alexa each died from a single gunshot wound to the head. London had gunshot wounds to the head and neck.³ A revolver was recovered near Olsen’s body, and other pistols of varying calibers were found elsewhere in the home. Investigators also pulled a projectile from a hallway wall.⁴

The Official Ruling

The medical examiner classified Alexa’s and London’s deaths as homicides and Olsen’s as a suicide. The full autopsy and toxicology reports have not been released, with officials citing the ongoing investigation.³

Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar has taken an unusually cautious public stance toward the finding. In November 2020, he said nothing he had seen would lead him to “refute or try to overturn” the ruling, but he refused to formally close the case or accuse Olsen. “I’m not ready to accuse Nichol Olson of such a heinous, ugly crime against humanity without ample proof,” he said.⁵ He cited uninterviewed persons of interest and unresolved questions about their whereabouts at the time of the deaths.

In January 2021, Salazar went further and publicly called the initial investigation “insufficient.” He said some evidence had not been properly reviewed before reaching his desk and that “quite frankly, I don’t think a full-on effort was made.”⁶ The case was reassigned to a cold case detective. The FBI had assisted since the day of the deaths, and the Texas Rangers later reviewed the findings.

Why the Ruling Is Disputed

Several pieces of evidence sit awkwardly with a straightforward murder-suicide, and several investigative gaps have never been filled.

Four 911 Calls From Olsen’s Phone

Olsen’s cellphone placed five calls the night of the deaths. The first went to Wheeler’s mother, who did not answer. The next four went to 911.⁷ Three disconnected before a dispatcher answered. One connected, but not long enough for the system to capture GPS coordinates, so deputies were not dispatched, and callbacks went unanswered.⁵ Salazar has declined to say what, if anything, was spoken on the connected call. The calls were placed hours after Wheeler said he had left the house.

Blood Patterns Suggesting Movement

Investigators documented smeared blood along the upstairs hallway walls, near a railing, in areas connecting the hallway to the staircase, and near the garage doorway. Swabs were taken from a master-bathroom shower drain, a bathtub drain, and a downstairs restroom. Salazar has said the blood evidence indicated a “high probability” that at least one victim moved through the home after the initial shooting.⁴

Undisclosed Forensics

Gunshot residue tests were collected from Olsen, both daughters, and Wheeler. The results have never been publicly disclosed.⁸ The full autopsy reports remain sealed.

Incomplete Collection

Salazar acknowledged DNA was “not collected from everybody that could have been considered a person of interest.”⁴ Seized iPhones, MacBooks, and iPads were not all fully searched, because some required additional warrants. Family counsel reported that some witnesses were never contacted and that many witness statements were neither recorded nor written down.⁶

Olsen’s Plans to Leave

Records showed Olsen had recently toured an apartment, which her family points to as evidence she was planning to move out with her daughters, not planning to harm them.⁴

The sheriff’s office maintains that despite these concerns, and despite reviews by the FBI and Texas Rangers, no evidence has been found to contradict the original ruling.

Charles Wheeler’s Role

Wheeler met Olsen through Instagram in the summer of 2016, and she moved into his home in 2017. Friends described the relationship as “tumultuous” and said Olsen experienced emotional abuse, including a 2017 incident when Wheeler reportedly left her stranded without her belongings at a Galveston hotel.¹ No protective orders or formal domestic violence complaints have been identified in reporting on the case.

Three months after the deaths, Salazar identified Wheeler as a “person of interest” but stated explicitly that he was not a suspect.⁹ Wheeler has never been charged. His attorneys say he had “nothing to do with the deaths.” Gate camera footage captured Wheeler’s truck leaving the neighborhood the night of January 9, but investigators say the video does not clearly show the driver’s face.

Both girls’ fathers have sued Wheeler in Bexar County civil court. Hector Bribiescas, London’s father, filed in January 2021, alleging negligence and gross negligence for failing to secure his firearm and failing to protect the children despite what the suit called Olsen’s “erratic” and “escalating” behavior. The suit sought more than $1 million in damages.¹⁰ Carlos Montez Jr., Alexa’s father, filed a separate lawsuit making similar allegations. Wheeler denied all allegations in court filings. As of January 2024, both lawsuits were still pending.

Where the Case Stands

As of March 2026, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office treats the case as closed, with the official determination remaining a double murder by Olsen followed by her suicide. Salazar has said the case will be reopened only if new evidence emerges. Full forensic reports have not been released. The civil lawsuits brought by the victims’ fathers remain unresolved.⁴

In the fall of 2022, the Bribiescas family and their attorney, Joe Hoelscher, wrote to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton asking that the investigation be taken from the sheriff’s office and reassigned to the Texas Rangers, calling the handling of the case an “insufferable circus.” The Rangers did not assume jurisdiction, and the sheriff’s office kept the case.¹¹

1
San Antonio Express-News. Anaqua Springs Nichol Olsen Wheeler Unsolved
2
News 4 San Antonio. Timeline: Four Years Since Anaqua Springs Shooting Deaths
3
San Antonio Express-News. Anaqua Springs Ranch Nichol Olsen Wheeler Salazar
4
Fox San Antonio. Blood Smeared on Hallway Walls, Guns Stashed Inside: New Report Shakes Seven-Year-Old Case
5
Fox San Antonio. Sheriff Shares Reasons for Refusing to Close the Anaqua Springs Shooting Deaths Case
6
San Antonio Express-News. Bexar County Sheriff Says Anaqua Springs Investigation Insufficient
7
Crime Online. Nichol Olsen: Four 911 Calls Made Before Triple Deaths
8
San Antonio Express-News. Anaqua Springs Shootings Follow-Up
9
San Francisco Chronicle. Man Under Scrutiny After Anaqua Springs Deaths
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San Antonio Express-News. Father of Child Slain in Anaqua Springs Shootings Files Lawsuit
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San Antonio Express-News. Anaqua Springs Deaths Texas Rangers