HINESVILLE, Ga. (Court TV) — Nicholas Kassotis ‘ ex-wife took the stand in his murder trial and detailed a web of lies and deceit so deep that she said she never even knew his full name or that he had been married twice previously.

Samantha Kolesnik testified against her ex-husband, Nicholas Kassotis, on Aug. 8, 2025. (Court TV)

Samantha Kolesnik told the court she first connected with Kassotis, who used the name Nicholas Stark, in September 2022 through Twitter when he messaged her saying he had purchased all four of her horror fiction books. Kassotis told her that he was an unpublished short fiction writer.

What began as casual online conversations evolved into an emotional relationship by November 2022, leading to phone calls and eventually meeting in person in December of that yea

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