19 August 2020
ST. LOUIS– The {son|child|kid|boy} of the owner of a St. Louis-area soul food {restaurant|dining establishment} that was the setting for the {reality|truth} {show|program} “{Welcome|Invite} to {Sweetie|Sweetheart|Darling} Pie’s” {has|has actually} been charged in a murder-for-hire plot that {resulted in|led to} the death of his nephew {four|4} years {ago|back|earlier}.
James Timothy Norman, of Jackson, Mississippi, was {arrested|apprehended|detained|jailed} Tuesday in the March 14, 2016, {fatal|deadly} shooting of his nephew Andre Montgomery, who was {gunned down|assassinated} near a park in St. Louis. Norman, the 41-year-old {son|child|kid|boy} of {Sweetie|Sweetheart|Darling} Pie’s owner Robbie Montgomery, {faces|deals with} a federal charge in St. Louis of conspiring to {use|utilize} interstate commerce {facilities|centers} in the commission of a murder-for-hire, {resulting in|leading to} death.
The U.S. {Attorney|Lawyer}’s {office|workplace} in St. Louis {said|stated} in {a news release|a press release} that Norman conspired with {a woman|a lady|a female}, Terica Ellis, of Memphis, Tennessee, in Montgomery’s killing. In 2014, when Montgomery was 18, {prosecutors|district attorneys} {say|state} Norman {obtained|acquired|got} a $450,000 life {insurance|insurance coverage} policy on his nephew that {listed|noted} Norman as the sole {beneficiary|recipient}.
{Prosecutors|District attorneys} {allege|declare} in the criminal {complaint|grievance|problem} that in the day’s leading up to Montgomery’s death, Norman flew to St. Louis from Los Angeles, where he was living at the time, and Ellis {traveled|took a trip} to St. Louis from her {home|house} in Memphis.
On the day of the killing, Ellis {used|utilized} {a temporary|a short-term|a momentary|a short-lived} phone to {determine|identify|figure out} Montgomery’s {location|place|area}, then she called Norman. Ellis’ phone {location|place|area} {placed|put|positioned} her near Montgomery at the time of his death, according to the {complaint|grievance|problem}. {Immediately|Instantly|Right away} following the shooting, Ellis {placed|put|positioned} another call {and then|and after that} {began|started} {traveling|taking a trip} back to Memphis.
{Prosecutors|District attorneys} {say|state} Ellis, who {faces|deals with} the {same|exact same|very same} charge as Norman, {later|later on} {deposited|transferred} more than $9,000 in {cash in|money in} {various|different|numerous} {bank accounts|checking account|savings account}. A week after the killing, Norman {contacted|got in touch with|called} the life {insurance|insurance coverage} {company|business} in {an attempt|an effort} to {collect|gather} on his nephew’s policy, {prosecutors|district attorneys} {said|stated}.
Federal {prosecutors|district attorneys} {declined|decreased} to {say|state} who was the {alleged|supposed} shooter.
Both Norman and the victim, who was Robbie Montgomery’s {grandson|grand son}, appeared on “{Welcome|Invite} to {Sweetie|Sweetheart|Darling} Pie’s,” which ran for {five|5} seasons on the Oprah Winfrey Network {starting|beginning} in 2011, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. {Before|Prior to} opening the {restaurant|dining establishment}, Robbie Montgomery was a backup {singer|vocalist} for Ike and Tina Turner.Source: columbiatribune.com