Returning to her Safety Harbor home after dinner on the night of January 8, 2004, Niccole Halpin was attacked and brutally beaten by an intruder in front of her two young sons. The boys were later found hiding in the bathtub, while Nicole was discovered severely injured in the bedroom. She was rushed to the hospital and taken off life support on January 11.
The ensuing investigation revealed that one of Niccole's ex-boyfriends, Daniel Welch, had been harassing her. The 32-year-old broke up with Daniel only two months before the attack and was reportedly seeing a different man named Christopher Catuogno at the time.
Several leads, including a statement from Daniel's then-girlfriend and clues from a 911 call, were used to link him to the crime after two years. He eventually pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
An all-new episode of Killer Relationship With Faith Jenkins is slated to revisit Niccole Halpin's beating death this Sunday. The episode titled Fatal Attraction will air on Oxygen on July 16, 2023, at 7:00 pm ET.
The official synopsis states:
"Single mother Niccole Halpin is murdered in her home and her two children witness the attack, but justice will prevail when detectives sift through a list of Niccole's admirers to find her killer."
Niccole Halpin was on the phone with her boyfriend when an intruder attacked her in front of her young sons
According to The Sun, Niccole Halpin, a divorced mother-of-two, had returned to her Safety Harbor home after dinner with her then-boyfriend Christopher Catuogno and two young sons when she sensed someone inside the house.
Following this, Niccole called Christopher, who was on a call with him at the time, and heard screams coming from the other end. The latter kept the line open and called 911 to report the happenings.
Meanwhile, Niccole, running from the intruder, rushed into the bedroom where her younger son Drew was playing video games. Drew saw the man wearing all-black attire and a ski mask hit his mother with a blunt object resembling a bat.
The ruthless strike resulted in blood spatter that covered the seven-year-old. The intruder continued to beat the mother while the kids hid in the bathtub.
First responders arrived at the crime scene and found Nicole unconscious in the bed and Drew and nine-year-old Max in the bathtub. There were no signs of a break-in, and the kids failed to identify the intruder, who donned a mask.
The 32-year-old victim was rushed to the hospital and remained on life support for four days before eventually pulling the plug. She suffered severe blunt-force injuries to the face and head.
Clues from the 911 call made on the night of the attack on Niccole Halpin were used to find the intruder
Not long after the incident, detectives suspected the involvement of Niccole Halpin's ex-boyfriend, Daniel Welch. Niccole and Daniel had dated for about two years before the former decided to break up with him when he proposed marriage only three months before the attack.
According to sources, Niccole's friends and family informed authorities that following their break-up, Daniel had been pestering and harassing her to the point where she even considered filing a restraining order against him. He allegedly grew obsessed with her.
The Tampa Bay Times reported that a month after the attack on Niccole, authorities while transcribing the 911 call made by Christopher on that fateful night, heard a male voice in the background asking the 32-year-old to "calm down."
Several people, including Daniel's sister, identified it as his voice. Moreover, he failed to produce an alibi or his whereabouts from the night of the incident and also unintentionally revealed specific details about the crime that were not made public at the time. Authorities also believed he had a key to the house.
Daniel Welch was arrested in October 2005 on drug-related charges and sentenced to three-and-a-half years in state prison. The following January, he was indicted on a first-degree murder charge.
In May 2007, Daniel pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of second-degree murder and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Learn more about Niccole Halpin's death on Oxygen's Killer Relationship With Faith Jenkins.
