Authorities say that James “Tim” Norman, star of the 1990s sitcom Welcome to Sweetie Pie, was involved in a murder-for-hire plan that resulted in the 2016 shooting death of his nephew. On Thursday, Norman was sentenced to life in prison.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, in September 2018, a jury found 43-year-old Norman guilty of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud on March 14, 2016, shooting death of 20-year-old Andre Montgomery Jr.
For nine seasons, from 2011 to 2018, Norman co-starred alongside Montgomery on OWN Network’s Welcome to Sweetie Pies, which followed the family’s soul food company. Prosecutors allege that Norman attempted to cash out on a $450,000 false life insurance policy he took out on Montgomery in 2014 by orchestrating his nephew’s murder through middlemen.
“And the measure of someone’s character is what they do when they think no one is watching,” Danis added. “When he thought no one was watching, he planned the execution of his nephew and carried it out.”
“I’m still in disbelief. The feds knew 100% I did not do those insurance policies. But the jury didn’t get to hear that,” Norman wrote in a Feb. 23 Instagram post captioned “#innocent.”
During Thursday’s sentencing hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Angie Danis said, “Tim Norman conveyed one image to the public, but there were more sinister intents hiding underneath,” as reported by the press release.
There were “many false representations regarding Montgomery’s income, net worth, medical history, work, and family background” in the life insurance policy, according to a previous news release.
In addition to Norman, three other people have pled guilty to participating in the murder-for-hire conspiracy: Travell Anthony Hill, Terica Ellis, and Waiel “Wally” Rebhi Yaghnam.
Hill, a St. Louis resident, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in October 2022 for shooting and killing Montgomery with a.380-caliber revolver after learning Montgomery’s whereabouts from a woman who knew both Montgomery and Norman, according to official reports. Hill, who is now 31, received $5,000 afterward.
Ellis, now 39 years old, allegedly admitted that Norman paid her $10,000 to find Montgomery and pass on his location. According to Ellis, she anticipated that Norman would take action, but she had no idea that Montgomery would be shot.
In January 2023, Ellis was given a three-year prison term.
According to the prosecution, insurance agent Waiel “Wally” Rebhi Yaghnam was the fourth person to be convicted and sentenced to three years in jail in the previous November. Beginning in October 2014, Yaghnam was accused of assisting Norman in obtaining various insurance policies.
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According to a criminal complaint acquired by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the defendant had three separate life insurance policies totaling $700,000. Two of the policies were issued by Americo Insurance Company and two were issued by Foresters Insurance, each for $200,000.
According to the complaint, Norman approached Foresters Insurance in 2015 about getting replacement coverage but was turned down.
Authorities allege that after Montgomery’s death, Yaghnam assisted Norman in making a claim against Montgomery’s life insurance policy. U.S. Attorney Sayler A. Fleming said in a statement that while “Andre’s family was robbed of their loved one,” they may find “some measure of peace and justice” in this outcome.
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