Terica Taneisha Ellis and Waiel Rebhi Yaghnam entered guilty pleas for their involvement in the murder of Andre Montgomery (the grandson of Sweetie Pie’s restaurant owner Robbie Montgomery) on Friday, July 22. United States District Court Judge John A. Ross accepted their plea and set their sentencing for October 26.
Yaghnam and Ellis were hired by Montgomery’s uncle, James Timothy Norman (Welcome To Sweetie Pie’s reality star), for his murder-for-hire scheme. According to the Eastern District of Missouri’s U.S. Attorney’s Office, the time for when the planning began is unknown. It’s known that Yaghnam got involved in 2014, helping Norman obtain a $450,000 life insurance policy on 20-year-old Montgomery. The two submitted three life insurance applications containing false information like Montgomery’s net worth, employment, family background, and medical history.
Norman received a $200,000 policy and a $200,000 accidental death rider, which gives loved ones access to a lump sum of money if the deceased person died from a cause that’s not determined to be natural. He also had a $50,000 10-year-term rider that only paid out if Montgomery died within ten years of the policy’s issue date.
Fast forward to March 2016, Ellis got involved. Ellis and Norman engaged in a sexual relationship for several years before Montgomery’s death. Days before the murder, Ellis and Norman met at the Chase Park Plaza, where they conversed and engaged in sexual intercourse. During their discussion, Norman showed Ellis a photo of Montgomery and asked if she knew him. The woman claimed she met Montgomery at Bottom’s Up, an exotic dance club she worked at, and the two exchanged phone numbers. Norman declared he was looking for his nephew and was upset with him. On March 14, 2016, Ellis agreed to help Norman locate his nephew and told officials that she was aware that Norman was going to do something to the victim. On March 13, 2016, Norman flew from Los Angeles to St. Louis for his murder-for-hire scheme.
Ellis acted as bait to lure Montgomery outside and informed Norman and his hired assassin, Travell Hill, of his nephew’s position at 3964 Natural Bridge Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri. The same day around 8:02 p.m., the 20-year-old was shot and killed by Hill.
Hill pleaded guilty to the murder charges on June 3, 2022, and awaits his sentencing. The hearing is scheduled for Sept. 20, 2022.
Ellis escaped to Memphis, Tennessee, and continuously deposited thousands of dollars into her checking and savings account. The cash she deposited from Norman was for payment for her role in Montgomery’s murder.
Norman didn’t wait long to pounce on collecting his nephew’s insurance policy. He and Yaghnam faced difficulties because Foresters Financial, a Canada-based insurance company, had not received all of the required documents needed to adjudicate his claim on Montgomery’s life insurance.
