The shooter of reality TV star Andre Montgomery Jr. pled guilty Friday and was convicted to life in prison, but not before singing for prosecutors and taking those also responsible down with him.
Travell Anthony Hill, 30, was indicted on counts of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire as well as murder-for-hire in the killing of Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s 21-year-old Montgomery in March 2016, reports the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch.Montgomery, a regular cast member of the OWN reality show about the St. Louis soul food empire headed by his grandmother Robbie Montgomery, was tragically shot to death by Hill under the direction of Tim Norman, Montgomery’s uncle and another star of the show.
Hill admitted to collecting $5,000 from Norman for the murder two days after Montgomery’s death. According to jail records, Hill was also recorded discussing the crime to his brother during calls from jail.
In his plea agreement, Hill also named two of three people in connection to the murder-for-hire, use of burner phones, life insurance policies and money in exchange for the assassin services.
The convicted hitman additionally stated that Norman hired him because “he wanted Montgomery dead.”
Terica Ellis, an exotic dancer with a history with Montgomery, was allegedly also hired by Norman to lure the 21-year-old to the murder site, says Hill.
Investigators maintain that Ellis received a $10,000 payday for her role. Norman and Ellis both face conspiracy to commit murder charges.
It gets even crazier.
According to court documents, Norman also took out a $450,000 life insurance policy on his nephew with insurance agent Waiel Rebhi Yaghnam. While Norman was never able to collect on the scheme, he and the agent were hit with wire and mail fraud for the life insurance policy. Add on multiple counts for aggravated identity theft for Yaghnam.
Many fans took to Twitter to voice their disbelief.
Per U.S. District Judge John A. Ross, Hill’s sentencing is scheduled for September. Norman and Ellis’ trial is also set for September. Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty for the pair.