Update: NBC5’s Phil Williams denies rumors involving Aaron Solomon, says they are the reason he’s not covering the mystery around Grant Solomon’s death

Yesterday, we covered the allegations, which we believe to be credible, that NBC5 investigative reporter Phil Williams may be refusing to cover the murder of Grant Solomon due to a sexual relationship with Aaron Solomon. Our coverage resulting in the predictable outrage, along with claims from Phil that the allegations are “unhinged.” But he skirted the claims of two reporters, who have allegedly said that Phil stated that Angie Solomon is “crazy.”

And now, in a logical goofy loop in which Phil doubles down on his claims about Angie, he uses his conclusory statements to explain why he won’t cover Grant’s death.

For starters, Phil’s claim shows that his ethical reference point is seriously skewed. If every time Phil encountered a story in which a party to the story is, in his words, “unhinged,” there’d be damned little to write about.

Second, Grant’s story stands and falls on its own. Even if, arguendo, Angie were facing psychological problems, that is not a legitimate basis to not seek justice for Grant. And given everything Angie’s been through, who would blame her if she were facing challenges? No one with any compassion.

Third, Phil is still not addressing the claims that he has trashed a grieving mother behind her back to other reporters. In fact, he’s doubled down on those claims, so we’re prepared to conclude they are true. That demonstrates inappropriate bias from a journalistic perspective. And as one human being to another, that’s about as low as it gets.

Fourth, Aaron interned at NBC5, so Phil’s claim that he only knows Aaron from award ceremonies is, at best, questionable.

Fifth, we’re calling Phil out on his dissing Q-Anon proponents. While we categorically reject Q-Anon conspiracy theories, the fact that someone follows Q-Anon doesn’t make them unworthy of respect, or mean that it’s somehow inappropriate to interact with them on other issues.

Sixth, Phil’s untoward comments conveniently skirt the fact that Aaron Solomon is a substantiated pedophile, per the report below. So help us understand: You’re not prepared to help a teenaged child sex abuse victim because you claim her mother is “crazy”? Is that what you are saying? As you like to say, “It’s not a good look.”

So, we’re prepared to kick the hornet’s nest again and say, “Phil, you have issues. And when it comes to the Grant Solomon case, your issues involve a lack of integrity. Whether it’s bias against a grieving mother, which is no excuse at all, or other reasons, we don’t know. But you are in the wrong, and you owe Angie an apology.”

Finally, the included screen cap is documentation of Phil’s inappropriate comments about Angie.