NEW ORLEANS - A man accused of shooting and killing a woman and then setting her body on fire after meeting her at a club on Downman Road pleaded guilty Friday, according to the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office.
Thayon Samson, 33, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, second-degree kidnapping, obstruction of justice and solicitation of murder in the killing of 31-year-old Lindsay Nichols of Des Allemands.
Samson was sentenced to 40 years in prison without the possibility of parole, probation or suspended sentence as part of the plea agreement, which was approved by Nichols' family, according the DA's office.
"This truly was one of the most horrific crimes seen in New Orleans in recent years," Cannizzaro said. "While this guilty plea cannot bring this young woman back to her loved ones, it does at least spare them the agony of hearing her anguished final moments recounted at trial. I'm proud of the work that NOPD detectives and our diligent prosecutors put forth to bring this killer to justice."
According to court records, Nichols was seen on surveillance video leaving the club on Downman Road with Samson around 4 a.m. on June 21, 2015.
Nichols later made a frantic call to 911 saying that a man was outside of her car with a gun and holding her car keys.
Court records indicate that the 911 operator didn't dispatch a police unit to the scene for eight minutes and when officers arrived, they could not find Nichols or her vehicle.
Around 7:15 a.m. that same morning, her car body was found inside of her vehicle, which had been set on fire on a deserted stretch of Michoud Boulevard.
According to the DA's office, NOPD homicide detective Rob Barrere also found partially burned in the trunk a pair of basketball shorts. The shorts matched a pair worn by Samson in a photo found on his Instagram account, and were linked to the defendant through DNA testing. The investigation and arrest of Samson, who worked as both a barber and exotic dancer, featured in an episode of the A&E docudrama "The First 48."
Samson's co-defendant in the case, 30-year-old Troy Varnado Jr., remains scheduled for trial Sept. 17. An Orleans Parish grand jury in May 2017 charged Varnado with second-degree murder, second-degree kidnapping, obstruction of justice and accessory after the fact to second-degree murder.