Fla. couple who adopted 12 children found slain

[islandmonkey]

Good job, ISLAND and thank you too, CECE.

Very disappointing if they really did let Cab Tice slip between their fingers. I somehow doubt it, though.

 ISLAND, Do you know the other car dealership that Tice was supposed to be manager? Had you heard that he was supposed to hold a national news conference on July 27? That was news to me. Do we have a recent picture of him?

Hi Fanny~I NEVER heard anything about Tice's "press conference", and at this point there is no warrant, he's just wanted for questioning Kinda like Pam Wiggins was JUST wanted for questioning. It will be intersting to see if he is able to find his was back to town IYKWIM.

I don't have a current photo and I have searched


RIZZY~

Thanks for the update, and I agree CandyRose must require about 2 hours of sleep a night .......

[islandmonkey]

More from Rizzy's NewsWeek link (which is a great post!!!)

Tice's relationship with Billings, however, became poisonous, according to three people who knew them both and requested anonymity for similar reasons. Two of them explained that Billings had invested in a "floor-planning" deal with Tice, which involves fronting money for bulk vehicle purchases, usually in exchange for the titles and gradual repayment, plus interest. But Tice, they say, pocketed the cash and made off with the cars, fleecing Billings to the tune of at least $100,000. As a result, according to the two acquaintances, Billings went to the Escambia County sheriff's office, which began investigating (the detective believed to be handling the case did not return calls for comment).

Another individual made similar allegations against Tice to police in Foley, Ala., home to another of his businesses. There, Det. Larry Dearing confirmed to NEWSWEEK that Tice is under investigation for allegedly smuggling 23 vehicles worth $61,000 to buyers in Mexico (though he has not been charged). The two acquaintances say Escambia County sheriff's detectives recently informed Billings that they were making progress in their investigation. Perhaps Tice was "worried about [Billings] testifying" against him, speculates one. What's certain, says the other, is that Tice "hates [Byrd] Billings with a passion."

Authorities haven't publicly addressed the possibility of a Tice connection. But the individual familiar with the investigation says that "all business associates of Billings's are persons of interest." Some of these associates have fled the area, the individual says, including one who's believed to have left the country. In the aftermath of the killings, the sheriff's office has apparently redoubled its efforts to investigate Billings's allegations against Tice. According to a source with direct knowledge of the matter, the detective in charge of the inquiry into their business dealings recently asked Ashley Billings—Melanie's biological daughter, 26—to cooperate in the case, which she agreed to do, hoping to buttress her father's claims. (Beasley, the Billings's family lawyer, did not confirm that.) So far, authorities have not arrested Tice. One of the acquaintances says that someone in the sheriff's office told him that local law enforcement wasn't moving against Tice because he was cooperating with a federal agency in one of its investigations (the sheriff's office declined to comment).

Amid all the speculation, a NEWSWEEK reporter met with Tice in his office on a used-car lot in Pace, Fla., last month. In a brief interview, Tice declined to address the allegations that he smuggled cars and stole from Billings, but claimed that the two were friends and that he had nothing to do with the murders. He concluded by citing officials' statements early on that, in Tice's paraphrasing, "This was nothing but a robbery." It may well have seemed as simple as that in the beginning. But as investigators soon discovered, this has become, in Sheriff Morgan's memorable description, one "humdinger" of a case.

[cece]

http://www.wkrg.com/crime/article/oldest-suspect-in-billings-murder-pleads-not-guilty/240131/Aug-06-2009_12-19-pm/

The oldest suspect charged in the Billings murder case says he didn't do it.

56-year-old Leonard Gonzales Senior pleaded not guilty Thursday morning to two counts of second-degree murder, home invasion and tampering with evidence.

State Attorney Bill Eddins says he will present the case to a grand jury within the next week.

The grand jury will decide if any of the suspects should face capital murder charges for the July 9th murders of Byrd and Melanie Billings, a couple known for adopting special needs children.

Arraignments for the alleged shooter/mastermind, Leonard Gonzales Jr, Wayne Coldiron and Pamela Long Wiggins were all delayed until after the grand jury hearing.

Pamela Long Wiggns is the only suspect not charged with murder. She's charged with being an accessory after the fact. Police found a safe stolen from the Billings' home buried in her backyard.

[cece]

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/AP/story/1173714.html

Prosecutor to seek new charge in Panhandle murders

 PENSACOLA, Fla. --  Prosecutors will ask a grand jury to indict seven men for first-degree murder in the home-invasion slayings of a wealthy Panhandle Couple, a move that could allow them to seek the death penalty, a state attorney said Thursday.

Judge Linda Nobles delayed court proceedings that had been scheduled Thursday for four of the people charged so far in the deaths of Byrd, 66 and Melanie Billings, 43. The couple were shot to death last month during a break-in at their home west of Pensacola. They were known for adopting 13 children with autism, downs syndrome and other special needs.

State Attorney Bill Eddins said he will present his case to a grand jury Wednesday and asked the group to appear in court in one week to face new charges depending on the grand jury's decision.

Eddins and Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan have said the investigation into the July 9 home-invasion is continuing and that more arrests are possible.

Eddins said it is too early to say whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty against any of those arrested thus far.

"A decision to seek the death penalty has to be done a very deliberate and methodical way," he said.

Byrd and Melanie Billings' daughter, son-in-law, and other relatives filled the first row of the courtroom Thursday morning. They left the building through a back door without talking to the media.

Among those scheduled to appear for arraignment was karate instructor Leonard Gonzalez Jr., 35, who investigators have identified as the ringleader of the group. According to court documents, another suspect has told investigators that Gonzalez was the person who shot and killed the couple.

In addition to the seven male suspects, Pamela Long Wiggins, 47, is charged as an accessory.

Wiggins, an antique shop owner, had rented a home to Gonzalez. Investigators found a safe from the Billings' home in her backyard. Wiggins' attorney entered a not guilty plea on her behalf on Wednesday, but Eddins said the charge against her will likely change.

Gonzalez's father, Leonard Patrick Gonzalez, 56, appeared in court with his attorney, Tony Henderson. Henderson entered a not guilty plea for Gonzalez to the four charges he currently faces: two counts of second degree murder and two counts of home invasion with a firearm. Henderson said the elder Gonzalez will return to court in a week to respond to the new charges that will likely be brought after the grand jury meets.

Investigators discovered a red van identified from security cameras at the Billings' home in the elder Gonzalez's yard after the murders.

A fourth suspect, Wayne Thomas Coldiron, 41, also appeared in the courtroom. Coldiron, who faces the same charges as Gonzalez, appeared without his attorney. He looked around the room and smiled at the dozens of onlookers. He complained to the judge about a problem with the water in his jail cell before agreeing to have his arraignment postponed and being led away by deputies.

Investigators have said the men were dressed in "ninja garb," in all black clothing and masks, and that they entered the Billings' home, shot and killed the couple and left within four minutes. Nine of the couple's 17 children were home and in other parts of the sprawling estate during the home-invasion. The couple had four biological and 13 adopted children.

[cece]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20090806/NEWS01/90806004

Two of the eight suspects in the Byrd and Melanie Billings slayings appeared in court this morning.


Leonard Gonzalez Sr., 56, who is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, home invasion and tampering with evidence, entered a not guilty plea.

His charges could change within the next week. State Attorney Bill Eddins said the case will be presented to a grand jury. The grand jury will decide whether any of the suspects in the double homicide face a capital charge of first-degree murder, which is punishable by a mandatory life prison term or the death penalty.

Gonzalez Sr. didn’t speak at the hearing, but appeared feeble, walking with the aid of a wooden cane. One of his two attorneys, Assistant Public Defender Scott Ritchie, said that his client has several health problems and needs a hearing aid.

Ritchie wouldn’t say whether Gonzalez Sr. had contact with his son, Leonard Gonzalez Jr., 35, who is considered the shooter in the July 9 home invasion at the Billingses’ Beulah home. Both are housed at the Escambia County Jail without bond.

Arraignments for suspects Wayne Coldiron, 41, Leonard Gonzalez Jr. and Pamela Long Wiggins, 47, were all delayed until after the grand jury, at the request of State Attorney Bill Eddins. Despite entering the plea, Gonzalez Sr. also is due back in court.

Pamela Long Wiggins, 47, is the only suspect in the case not changed in the killings and free on bond. She is charged with accessory after the fact and is accused of helping the six men and 16-year-old boy who raided the Billingses’ home. Investigators say she also helped hide the weapons used as well as a small safe taken from the home.

She is also charged with an unrelated count of bigamy for allegedly being married to two different men in Florida and Alabama.

Coldiron, who entered the Billingses’ home and told investigators that Leonard Gonzalez Jr. likely killed the couple, according to court documents, also made a brief appearance today in the packed courtroom.

Coldiron, whose attorney Sharon Wilson did not appear with him at the hearing, complained about a lack of water in his holding cell outside Judge Linda Nobles’ courtroom at the M.C. Blanchard Judicial Building.

“Can you put me somewhere where there’s running water?” he asked the judge.
Nobles told Coldiron he would be returned to the Escambia County Jail within minutes.

The Billingses’ daughter, Ashley Markham, her husband, Blue, and several family members were ushered into the courtroom through a back door before the hearings began. They left in haste after hearings.

Markham, who is caring for her parents nine adopted, special-needs children, declined a request for an interview as she left the courthouse.

“No thank you,” she said.

[Magnolia]

From Rick's Blog:

Gonzalez charges set for grand jury
August 6 2009No Commented
Categorized Under: Escambia County, May 11 2009
On July 31, the State Attorney’s Office has reduced the charges on Patrick Gonzalez, Jr. from open counts of murder to second degree murder not premediated. The same goes for his father and all the other suspects.

According to our friends in the legal profession, this is a standard legal maneuver with a grand jury. The State Attorney knows that he can get a grand jury to, at a minimum, approve the lesser charge, but then argues for the charges to be increased to first degree.

[cece]

I wonder if Cab Tice showed up today or if he is still "in the wind".

WEAR TV 3 did broadcast a report by Dan Thomas that states that Cab Tice is a person of interest in the Billings case. It’s a video version of what I reported last week. Thomas did talk with an employee of the Eddy English Auto Sales who said that Tice is out of town and will be back by Thursday, August 6. This could get interesting.

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7089

[Rizzy]

I was wondering if Tice had surfaced anywhere today too!

I was re-reading some things today and found these additional comments under this entry VERY interesting!

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7080

Sordid tale of woe from T. Gonzalez’s ex

Check out the one from JD says:August 5, 2009 at 7:59 pm   

Sounds like this is getting deeper and deeper!

[Toler]

From ECSO:

Press Release

Pensacola, Fla–The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is currently questioning Henry “Cab” Tice, in the conjunction with the Billings Murder case. More details to come.


http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7100

[islandmonkey]

I was wondering if Tice had surfaced anywhere today too!

I was re-reading some things today and found these additional comments under this entry VERY interesting!

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7080

Sordid tale of woe from T. Gonzalez’s ex

Check out the one from JD says:August 5, 2009 at 7:59 pm   

Sounds like this is getting deeper and deeper!

OMG~Rita Meeks was called in as a consult when my daughter was in premature labor.......

[Rizzy]

http://ricksblog.biz/

Tice arrested for grand larceny
August 6 2009No Commented
Categorized Under: Escambia County, May 11 2009

More to come.


Maybe more details soon!

[Rizzy]

UPDATE .....


http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7105

Tice arrested for grand theft

Press release

Pensacola, Fla–The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has arrested Henry Cabell Tice, 61, on warrant. Tice faces one count of Grand Theft over $10,000 related to financial dealings with Byrd Billings’ business Worldco Financial Services. These charges are related to a criminal investigation initiated in May of 2008.

[islandmonkey]

http://www.pnj.com/article/20090806/NEWS01/90806024

 


Another arrest made in relation to Billings case
Kris Wernowsky • kwernowsky@pnj.com • August 6, 2009

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  A Gulf Shores, Ala., resident with business ties to Byrd and Melanie Billing as well as ties to the chief suspect in their slayings was arrested Thursday night on a grand theft charge and questioned about the murders.


 
Henry Cabell Tice, 61, drove himself to the Sheriff’s Office after officers notified him of a warrant revolving around accusations that he wrote worthless checks totaling more than $10,000 to Worldco Financial Services Inc., a company owned by the Billings family.


But Sheriff David Morgan has made clear that his main interest in Tice relates to whether he was involved in the July 9 slayings of the Billingses in their Beulah home. Billings and Tice knew each other through their respective used car businesses in Northwest Florida.


“Mr. Tice is a person of interest in the Billings’ case,’’ Morgan said Thursday night.
Early Thursday evening, Morgan took the unusual step of announcing that Tice was being questioned in connection with the murders along with being arrested on the grand theft charge. The Sheriff’s Office has questioned Tice before.


Later, Morgan said Tice told investigators that he had “a father and son relationship’’ with Leonard Patrick Gonzalez Jr., 35, one of eight people charged in the home invasion that ended in the Billingses’ deaths.


Six men and a 16-year-old boy have been charged with going to the home, and a woman has been charged with helping them after the crime. Gonzalez, according to a co-defendant’s statement to investigators, fired the multiple shots that killed the couple.


Morgan has not spelled out how he thinks Tice might be involved in the murders. However, he repeatedly has said he has not ruled out the possibility that the
murders were a contract killing.


Tice said he spoke with Gonzalez “on a daily basis,’’ according to Morgan. But the sheriff would not say whether Tice said he talked with Gonzalez the day of the slayings.


Morgan also said Tice told investigators Thursday he had business dealings with “the Mexican mafia” in relation to selling used cars.

(2 of 2)



“He had borrowed up to $50,000 at one time from the Mexican mafia and was in debt to them in his payments back to them,’’ the sheriff said.


Morgan would not say whether “the Mexican mafia” had anything to do with the Billings murders.


Tice’s statements concerning his relationship to Byrd Billings were “all over the map,’’ Morgan said.


“At first they were good friends, then they had a falling out,’’ he said. “It was a confusing statement in that respect.’’


Tice has been in Colombia, South America, for several days and returned Thursday, Morgan said. He was located at a Pace car dealership where he works and informed of the grant theft warrant. He voluntarily followed deputies back to the Sheriff’s Office for questioning on the murders and booking on the theft charge.


The grand theft charge alleges that Tice wrote between $10,000 and $20,000 in worthless checks to Worldco, which offered loans to car buyers and others who otherwise couldn’t get credit. Secretary of State records list Melanie Billings and her daughter, Ashley Markham, as officers of the company.


The investigation into those worthless checks began in May 2008, Morgan said. The probe has languished since then but was amped up as the sheriff became increasingly focused on Tice’s ties to the Billingses.


Tice was being processed into the Escambia County Jail late Thursday. His bond was set at $5,000.

[islandmonkey]

 

Tice's booking photo

[cece]

Good morning everyone & thanks for the updates. 

Only $5000 bond?  I guess with the current charges that's all they can do until they can get more evidence on his connection.  I was a little surprised that he returned.

[cece]

http://www.northescambia.com/?p=9970

Henry Cab Tice Arrested In Billings Case; Connections To Mexican Mafia

August 7, 2009

Thursday night, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office  arrested Henry Cabell Tice, 61, in connection to his dealings with a finance company owned by Byrd Billings.

ticehenry.jpgTice faces one count of grand theft over $10,000 related to financial dealings with Byrd Billings’ business Worldco Financial Services, according to a statement from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department. These charges are related to a criminal investigation initiated in May of 2008.

Tice and Billings knew each other because of their used car businesses and Worldco Financial, Sheriff David Morgan said, naming Tice as a “person of interest” in the murder investigation. The sheriff said Tice and murder suspect Leonard Gonzalez, Jr. had a “father and son relationship” and spoke often.

The sheriff also said that Tice admitted when questioned Thursday that Tice had connections to the Mexican mafia. Morgan said he would release further information soon about Tice  and his dealings with the Mexican mafia and the car business.

Morgan said Tice had borrowed $50,000 from the Mexican mafia, and that he was still in debt to them. In his dealings with the Mafia, Morgan said Tice would sell cars across the border to be resold in Mexico. The sheriff said the deals were cash, under-the-table.

[cece]

http://ricksblog.biz/?p=7095


Gonzalez charges set for grand jury (updated)

August 6 2009

Categorized Under: Escambia County, May 11 2009

On July 31, the State Attorney’s Office set the charges on Patrick Gonzalez, Jr. to second degree murder not premediated. The same goes for his father and all the other suspects.

According to asst. State Attorney Greg Marcille, the second degree is the highest charge that their office can set prior to going to the grand jury. State law requires that the open counts of murder be changed after a certain period of time.

Only a grand jury can set the charges as first degree murder.






The longest day..it’s a humdinger

August 7 2009

Categorized Under: Escambia County, May 11 2009

August 6, 2009 will go down as one of the longest days in my life as a journalist. We were dealing with two rumors all day. One was the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office was once again pushing to get an arrest warrant for Henry Cab Tice, the used car dealer who I had reported over a week ago as a person of interest in the murders of Bud and Melanie Billings and whether they were contract hits (The Daily Beast and IN Buzz). The second rumor was that Cab Tice had returned from Colombia, South America and was back in the area (The Daily Beast).

Rumors of an imminent arrest of Cab Tice have floated around since I first reported that those being questioned by investigators were telling law enforcement that the double homicide was actually murder-for-hire and that Patrick Gonzalez, Jr had been paid between $20,000-$50,000 for the killings. However, the arrest never materialized, leaving me and others believing that there was a political battle being waged between the State Attorney’s Office and the ECSO over Tice and the contract killing theory. After all, the robbery-gone-wrong angle was straight-forward and even Joe Pesci’s character from “My Cousin Vinny,” Vincent Gambini, could prosecute the case as it stood without any conspiracy plots.

All Wednesday, I received phone calls that Tice was coming back Thursday. WEAR’s Dan Thomas also reported it in his Cab Tice piece on Tuesday. Why was Tice returning? We had heard from several sources that Tice had fled to Colombia where he reportedly has a new wife. The big question for many about Tice and his business dealings with Bud Billings and others is where is all the money that he reportedly owes Billings ($150K-$300K), former business partner Wayne Peterson ($50K-$150K) and others, including his ex-wife.

By all accounts, Tice is nearly penniless and has no visible assets. Friends say that he doesn’t do drugs or gamble—although he does like Tequila, but not excessively to the tune of $1M. Could Tice have stashed money away in Colombia? No one knows.

When Tice came late yesterday afternoon to the offices of the ECSO, I fully believe that he didn’t think that he would be arrested. Tice, the consummate used car salesman, was there—I believe—to find out what the ECSO had on him and to “play” Sheriff Morgan. It didn’t work. Over nearly three hours of questioning, Tice told investigators of his connections with the Mexican mafia, from whom Tice said that he had borrowed $50K. It’s unclear whether it was a one-time loan or some kind of revolving credit plan. When the Tice interview was over, Cab was arrested for grand theft—for the cars that he sold off his Hispanic-American Auto Sales lot without paying off his creditor, Worldco Financial Services—a company owned by the Billings family.

The Mexican mafia connection to this case is one that I first heard within days of the killings, but I could never pin it down. There have been so many false leads in this investigation that I couldn’t determine whether the Mexican mafia theory was just another urban legend. The funny thing is that I heard more about the Mexican mafia in relationship with Patrick Gonzalez, Jr. and Pam Wiggins than Tice. However, I never could solidly tie it all down….and despite what the other media may think about my investigative work and my sources, I’ve been very careful in verifying the information that I have reported on this case.

Gulf Breeze – where Gonzalez and Wiggins live- had a recent federal case that many locals believed was tied to the Mexican mafia or the Mexican gang MS 13. In December 2007, Cancun’s Mexican Grill was raided by local, state and federal authorities–the charges were drug and human trafficking. Twenty-five people were arrested in the raids, 15 of whom were deported. Owner Rogelio Galvan-Chavez was sentenced to life in prison April 30, 2008 for operating a drug ring from his business and violating immigration laws (DOJ press release).

I am working on an article for The Daily Beast and will have more later. Stay tuned.

[cece]

Just as an aside, here is an article on the Cancun's Mexican Grill case:

Gulf Breeze News

Accomplices to Rogelio Galvan-Chavez in the Cancun's Mexican Grill drug and weapons trafficking and illegal immigration case were sentenced to prison last week.

Galvan-Chavez, the restaurant's 35-year-old owner, was sentenced to life in prison April 30 following his conviction of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine, conspiracy to use a communication facility to commit a felony, concealing, harboring and shielding illegal aliens for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain, and aiding and abetting the possession of a firearm by two illegal aliens.

The sentencings included:

Jesus Rodriguez-Orosco, 34, of Pensacola, the "front man" for Galvan-Chavez's operations, 16.6 years (200 months) for drug trafficking conspiracy, communication facility conspiracy, possessing a firearm as an illegal alien, and illegal reentry into the United States following deportation.

Cesar Madonado-Bazquez, 29, of Pensacola, operator of "Seven Mares Mexican Restaurant," 11.3 years (136 months) for drug trafficking conspiracy, possessing a firearm as an illegal alien, and illegal reentry into the United States following deportation.

Alejandro Hatem- Hernandez, 28, Pensacola, a local distributor, 10 years (120 months) for drug trafficking conspiracy, trafficking in fraudulent identification documents, possessing a firearm as an illegal alien, and illegal reentry into the United States following deportation. He pleaded guilty to his charges.

Antioco Cabrera-Esquivel, 34, of Pensacola, eight years (96 months) for drug trafficking conspiracy, possessing fraudulent identification documents, possessing a firearm as an illegal alien, and illegal reentry into the United States following deportation.

Rodriguez-Orosco, Madonado-Bazquez, Hatem- Hernandez, and Cabrera- Esquivel are all Mexican nationals unlawfully present in the United States and will be deported following service of their prison terms.

Galvan-Chavez led an organized crime group that distributed large quantities of cocaine and methamphetamine in the Panhandle. Galvan-Chavez obtained the drugs from a source in Atlanta, arranged for their transportation to the Panhandle, and used several individuals to distribute the cocaine and methamphetamine in Northwest Florida. Some of the drug and firearm transactions took place just outside Cancun's Mexican Grill, which is located about an eighth of a mile from Gulf Breeze High School.

"This investigation and prosecution dismantled a major interstate drug trafficking organization," U.S. Attorney Gregory Miller said. "The convictions and sentences could not have been achieved without the tireless, capable efforts of officers and agents of the Pensacola and Gulf Breeze police departments, Escambia and Santa Rosa County Sheriff's offices, and various state and federal investigative agencies."

Assistant United States Attorney David Goldberg prosecuted the case.

[islandmonkey]

 

Thanks Cece for the updates.......my laptop bit the dust this am, and I snuck one away from a co-worker for a bit

[Fanny Mae]

Tice's booking photo

BUSTED!!!!!!!