*Wednesday marked the second day of the “Sweetie Pies” murder-for-hire trial. Reality TV star James “Tim” Norman is on trial for the murder of his nephew Andre Montgomery Jr., whom he is accused of conspiring to have killed so as to collect on a life insurance policy.
The prosecution told jurors that the accused was desperate for money around the time his nephew was killed, according to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch report.
“The evidence will prove it is actually a very simple plan,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwendolyn Carroll said in her opening remarks.
One text exhibit in the prosecution’s hands indicates that two months before the killing, Norman allegedly told a cousin that he had recently been evicted from his St. Louis apartment and had more than $91,000 in monthly expenses but no income from the TV show.
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Norman and Montgomery Jr. were both stars in “Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s.” It was a long-running OWN reality show about a popular soul-food business in St. Louis, co-owned by Norman’s mother, Robbie Montgomery, who is Andre’s grandmother.
Montgomery Jr. was killed in 2016 outside of a St. Louis apartment complex. Just after his death, Norman is said to have taken out several life insurance policies on the deceased totaling over $450,000 and attempted to cash in the policies.
A burner phone and cell phone data helped to tie Norman to the crime, according to the prosecution. Montgomery was only 21 when he was killed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=158cB_DumLI
Travell Antony Hill, 30, was identified as the suspected shooter. Hill went ahead to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire. He also revealed that an exotic dancer identified as Terica Ellis lured Montgomery to the location where he was shot dead. Terica allegedly had a previous romantic relationship with Norman.
Hill also revealed he was paid $5,000 indirectly by Norman for shooting Montgomery. On her part, Ellis said Norman paid her $10,000 for luring the victim to the location.
But defense attorney Michael Leonard said in his opening remarks that he would soon prove that his client has no connection to his nephew’s death.
If anything, his client was but a concerned uncle and successful celebrity.
“Tim always felt a special bond with Andre,” Leonard stated. “And he felt a special responsibility.”
According to Atty. Leonard, Norman applied for life insurance policies on his nephew because Montgomery’s rising rap career saw him get into potentially deadly street conflicts. Additionally, the attorney argued that Norman was rich and did not need a fraudulent life insurance policy.
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