Woman Denies Slaying Her Husband : Crime: Court papers show she told police that William Nelson was out of town on the day she is suspected of killing and dismembering him.

Omayma Aref Nelson has denied to Costa Mesa police that she killed her husband and has told investigators that he was out of town the day she allegedly stabbed him to death and dismembered his body, according to court documents filed Wednesday.

A search-warrant affidavit states that Nelson, 23, of Costa Mesa told Detective Lynda Giesler during a tape-recorded interview that she did not kill William Edwin Nelson, 56, the morning of Dec. 1, and that he was out of state on a business trip.

The search-warrant affidavit, which contains the reasons why Costa Mesa police wanted to search Nelson’s home on Elden Avenue, was filed in Orange County Superior Court. Nelson’s statements to investigators and the accounts of some witnesses are contained in that record.

Nelson, who is being held without bail in Orange County Jail, is accused of murdering her husband and dismembering his body. She was arrested after police found six trash bags filled with human remains in the couple’s home and in William Nelson’s 1975 Corvette. Her arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 20.

Nelson’s statements contradict the account of Jose Albert Esquivel, an acquaintance of hers who said she admitted the killing to him outside his apartment the day of the slaying and tried to enlist him in a plan to get rid of William Nelson’s remains.

Esquivel recalled that Nelson was hysterical and distraught when she came over to his home on Monte Vista Avenue the afternoon of Dec. 1. He said she had cuts all over her body and complained that her husband had raped and assaulted her the night before.

According to the search-warrant affidavit, Nelson offered Esquivel two motorcycles and half of her money contained in a safe in return for his help. Esquivel said he contacted police instead.

Officers arrived at Esquivel’s apartment shortly thereafter and questioned Nelson. She said her husband was in Florida, and she gave officers permission to search the Corvette, where they found two plastic bags containing human organs rolled up in newspaper.

About an hour later, police entered the Nelson home and found four more trash bags apparently filled with body parts, including one in a laundry basket. According to the search warrant, an officer found bloodstains around the apartment and a butcher knife in the kitchen sink.

The affidavit further states that a neighbor saw a woman matching the suspect’s description leaving the apartment house earlier that day carrying a large brown bag.

Police have declined to discuss the case in detail or reveal whether they have discovered a murder weapon. Capt. Tom Lazar, a Police Department spokesman, has said, however, that Nelson is the main suspect.