‘Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s’ Star Tim Norman Arrested in Murder-for-Hire Killing

Tim Norman is shown in an August 18, 2020 booking photo. (Courtesy: Madison County Detention Center)

Tim Norman, one of the stars of the OWN reality series Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s, has been arrested in connection with a murder-for-hire killing.

James Timothy “Tim” Norman was taken into custody Tuesday in Jackson, Mississippi, and charged in the 2016 death of his nephew, Andre Montgomery, the U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Missouri said in a press release.

Norman, 41, is charged with conspiracy to use interstate commerce facilities in the commission of a murder-for-hire, resulting in death. He is being held at the Madison County Detention Center in Mississippi.

According to the complaint, Norman allegedly conspired with an exotic dancer named Terica Ellis and others to carry out the plot. Ellis is also charged with conspiracy to use interstate commerce facilities in the commission of a murder-for-hire, resulting in death.

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Welcome to Sweetie Pie's. (Credit: OWN)
‘Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s ran on OWN from 2011-2018

Federal authorities say in 2014, Norman obtained a $450,000 life insurance policy on his then-18-year-old nephew, and made himself the sole beneficiary. Less than two years later, Andre Montgomery was shot and killed.

According prosecutors, Norman flew to St. Louis, Missouri from his home in Los Angeles on March 13, 2016 —  the day before Montgomery’s murder.

On March 14, 2016, Ellis and Norman communicated using burner phones they activated that day, prosecutors said. Ellis used the temporary phone to communicate with the victim and learn his physical location. Immediately after learning Montgomery’s location, Ellis placed a call to Norman. At approximately 8:02 p.m., Montgomery was fatally shot in the city of St. Louis.

Ellis’ phone records place her in the vicinity of the murder, prosecutors said. Immediately after Montgomery’s death, Ellis called Norman.

In the days after the murder, Ellis deposited over $9,000 in cash into various bank accounts, authorities said. On March 21, 2016, Norman contacted the life insurance company in an attempt to collect on the policy he had obtained on his nephew. It’s unclear if he received the money.

US Attorney Jeff Jensen credited the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI with solving the case.

“The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Homicide Section and FBI have established a dedicated and effective partnership in this extensive investigation,” Jensen stated.

Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s ran on OWN from 2011 to 2018. The series followed a family running a chain of soul food restaurants called Sweetie Pie’s.


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About Anita Bennett

Anita Bennett is the editor and founder of Urban Hollywood 411. She can be reached on Twitter @tvanita.