The remains of Nicole Alston were found in Hogansville, Georgia, in 2007 after her body had been dismembered and set on fire. However, it was not until 2023 that authorities were able to identify the remains as Alston’s by using public genealogy databases. Alston’s girlfriend, Angel Marie Thompson, was indicted in February 2026 after prosecutors discovered she had spent close to 17 years pretending to be Alston. On the latest episode of Luxury Handbag Shopping’s Uncovered, investigative reporter Kristin Thorne breaks down why Thompson may have allegedly targeted Alston.
Thorne spoke to Sheryl McCollum, the director of the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute, about why this case is “not like most.” McCollum explained she believes Alston was “victimized” every day after her death because Thompson took on her identity.
By impersonating Alston, Thompson got access to Alston’s Social Security, Section 8 housing, her car and her job, she said.
McCollum explained that Thompson and Alston first met in New York City, though they moved to Georgia together where Alston didn’t know anyone.
McCollum said she believes Thompson targeted Alston from the very beginning of their relationship. “Nicole was an orphan. She did not have a mother and father. She had a woman that, by her own grace, took this child in,” she said. “The victim had a learning disability. She was legally blind. She relied on other people to get around New York City.”
Alston was “the perfect mark for this type of crime,” according to McCollum. “Who was gonna be looking for her? Nobody in Georgia. They didn’t even know she was there,” she said. “They didn’t know she existed. So when she goes missing, nobody’s looking for her.”
The couple moved to Georgia right after Thanksgiving in 2007. By December of that year, 13 pieces of what was later confirmed to be Alston’s body were found in garbage bags.
“Thirteen pieces, and this is without her hands, her feet or her head. So now you think, ‘Whoever this person is that did this to this victim, they’re thinking we’re never going to be able to identify this person, because we don’t have fingerprints or effects,’” McCollum said before pointing out that authorities were still able to get DNA from the remains.
Troup County Sheriff Clay Bryant got involved in the case and he quickly realized that things weren’t adding up. “We’ve got a person cut into pieces and set on fire, and nobody’s reported anybody missing,” McCollum said of the findings.
Around 2023, investigators used public genealogy databases to find a relative of the deceased. They then contacted Alston’s sister, who helped them officially identify the body as Alston.
“And we’re like, ‘OK, who is Nicole’? And we find out she’s from New York,” McCollum said, noting that Bryant’s next step was to find Alston’s driver’s license. “And then he finds out, not only did she have a driver’s license, she had a CDL and was a school bus driver.”
In light of the discovery, Bryant quickly determined “that whoever hurt her has probably assumed her identity.”
McCollum said she believes Thompson may have more victims. “If anybody has come in contact with this woman, Angel Marie Thompson, if she has conned you, if she has hurt you, if a loved one of yours was seen with her last, you need to call us,” she said.
