JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Shawn Whigham, the handyman accused in the murder of a 73-year-old dogsitter in Nassau County, pleaded no contest to the crime Wednesday. This means he did not plead guilty but is not challenging the charges against him and will not go to trial.
He will be sentenced to a 20-year prison sentence for 2nd degree murder and armed burglary with assault, as well as a 15-year prison sentence for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
The victim, Colleen Potts, was found dead at a home where she was pet sitting, on South 13th Street in Fernandina Beach, on Oct. 24, 2021. Officials said there was no sign of a struggle, and the dogs guarding the house when officers arrived were uninjured and still inside the home. Police say Whigham previously worked as a handyman for the home’s owner. They believe he broke into Potts’ car the night before her murder and say that her purse was missing from the home when she was found.
Whigham originally pleaded not guilty. His attorneys argued at the time that there was "no evidence" linking him to the crime.
