St. Louis Radio Host Killed; Husband Held

The host of St. Louis’ top-rated morning radio show was found shot to death, and her husband was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder.

Nan Wyatt, 44, was found Tuesday evening in a bedroom of her home in the St. Louis suburb of Twin Oaks.

Police said she had been shot several times with a .357-caliber Magnum handgun.

Thomas Erbland, 43, was jailed without bail.

Police said the couple were having marital problems but that officers had never been called to the home.

“The relationship was deteriorating,” said St. Louis County Police Lt. Jon Belmar.

The couple’s 7-year-old son was home at the time of the shooting but was not injured. Afterward, Erbland dropped the boy off at the home of Wyatt’s parents, then called them to say something had happened, police said.

Erbland was picked up at a store as he tried to locate a police station to turn himself in, Belmar said.

Since 1996, Wyatt, whose legal name was Nandray Erbland, had hosted the “Total Information A.M.” program on KMOX, the city’s top-rated morning drive-time radio show. She was known for her in-depth political reporting, and had won several journalism awards.

On Wednesday morning, the station paid tribute to Wyatt, with callers including longtime listeners and politicians.

“I am in shock. I just have a hard time believing it,” said Karen Carroll, who recently stepped down as KMOX vice president and general manager. “Nan was the strength and backbone of KMOX News and always the first to pitch in [in] any crisis. It is a shame.”

St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said Wyatt was “one of the most gifted journalists I have ever known” -- a tough interviewer but “always well-prepared, fair and professional.”

“She used interviews to enlighten her audiences, not to embarrass her guests,” Slay said.