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Tarpon Springs quadruple-homicide suspect accused of beating wife's family 1 year after killing her

Authorities say Shelby Nealy admitted to killing his wife and three members of her family in their Tarpon Springs home.

TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. — The man accused of killing his wife and three in-laws was booked Saturday into the Pinellas County Jail to face several murder charges.

Officials with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office said 25-year-old Shelby John Nealy, who also goes by Shelby Svensen, had been extradited from Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland to Pinellas County.

Nealy is charged with three counts of first-degree capital murder, three counts of aggravated cruelty to animals and one count of grand theft auto, jail records show.

A judge Sunday morning ordered Nealy be held on no bond. Nealy also will have a public defender appointed for him.

Richard Louis Ivancic, 71, Laura Ann Ivancic, 51, and Nicholas James Ivancic, 25, were found dead on New Year's Day in their Tarpon Springs home. Police Maj. Jeff Young said Nealy admitted to killing them.

Young identified the family's three dogs he said Nealy also killed: Bailey, Bloomer and Buddy -- three Bichon Frise mixed breeds.

Credit: Tarpon Springs Police Department
Richard Louis Ivancic, Laura Ann Ivancic and Nicholas James Ivancic were found dead in their Tarpon Springs home.

Related: Robbery, drug use and murder? Tarpon Springs homicide suspect's criminal history dates to 2012

The body of his wife, 21-year-old Jamie Ivancic, was found buried in a yard at a Port Richey home following a days-long investigation. It's believed she might have been dead for possibly a year. Pasco County investigators said Nealy also admitted to her killing.

It is not yet known whether he is being charged in Pasco County for Jamie Ivancic's death.

Credit: Tarpon Springs Police
Jamie Nicole Ivancic

Related: Investigators: Tarpon Springs murder suspect ‘tricked’ family into thinking wife was still alive

Pinellas County records disclose Nealy told investigators the family hadn't heard from their daughter in some time, and he intended to kill them as they grew more suspicious. 

Richard, Laura and Nicholas Ivancic each were beaten with a hammer before they died, authorities said. On New Year's Day, a Tarpon Springs officer who first responded to the home on a welfare check found "numerous live flies and smelled a strong odor of body decomposition." 

Nealy allegedly told detectives they had been dead since mid-December.

The officer entered the home and found the bodies of Richard and Laura Ivanic wrapped in area rugs, and Nicholas Ivancic's body was wrapped in a painter's drop cloth -- he was beaten while sleeping on the couch, the records read.

Nealy took Laura Ivanic's Kia and drove it to Ohio because the license tag on his wife's car was expired, investigators said. He reportedly told authorities he intended to return to the Tarpon Springs home to dispose of the bodies.

Nealy was arrested in Lakeland, Ohio.

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