Snapped: Women Who Murder - Anne Plue Gates

Episode Date: April 28, 2024

The brutal murder of an Arabi, Louisiana man force authorities to examine every possible lead as they eventually learn their prime suspect is closely tied to an open cold case in Indiana.Seas...on 30 Episode 10Originally aired: December 03, 2017Watch full episodes of Snapped for FREE on the Oxygen app: https://oxygentv.app.link/WatchSnappedPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Starting point is 00:00:36 In NPR's Black Stories, Black Truths, a collection of stories as varied, nuanced, and dynamic as Black experiences, you'll hear. It means everything. Search NPR Black Stories, Black Truths, wherever you get your podcast. She was a woman who built a life around helping others. She went to school to be a nurse. She was really family-orientated. She went to school to be a nurse. She was really family-orientated.
Starting point is 00:01:05 She was a powerful woman, very pretty, and very pleasant to talk to. Until a brutal crime would leave her widowed not once, but twice. You have two cases, both homicides. Both were her husband. In search of answers, police uncover a tangled web of violence.
Starting point is 00:01:30 He suffered severe head wounds, numerous head wounds. He was lying on the floor, his blood everywhere. And at the center of it all was a forbidden love. She had portrayed this to be an open relationship. She didn't love him, he didn't love her. When I found out that they got married, basically it was like, holy s***. In the end, betrayal of blood would lead to the ultimate betrayal. Things flip and all of a sudden he's now charged with murder.
Starting point is 00:02:04 I just think that's incredible. That's ridiculous. She was that vindictive. the Anne Gates says that she just found her husband deceased in their home. Anne hadn't been to her house in days. Anne had an unusual living pattern. She would spend a couple of days living with her husband and then a couple of days staying with her parents. She would come and go. She had access to the house. She stayed there a couple of days a week. Ann tells police that she has no idea what happened, but her husband, 65-year-old Raymond Gates, is inside and covered in blood. 0000
Starting point is 00:03:14 0000 When I arrived on the scene, Ann Gates was standing in the front yard. With her was a friend of hers named Richard Newt. He was a security guard at the hospital where she worked as a nurse. When you first walk into the house, the TV was blaring full force.
Starting point is 00:03:38 He was lying on the floor, blood everywhere. Raymond suffered severe head wounds. Lying on the floor, blood everywhere. Raymond suffered severe head wounds. It appeared from the rig of mortis that he had been dead for several days. At that time, 1987 in Araby, it was very rare to have any violent crime. Because this is a low-crime area, it's important to start close in and then work your way out,
Starting point is 00:04:09 figure out what was going on in the victims' relationships and his life. For Raymond Gates, life began in Omaha, Nebraska in 1922. One of three children, Raymond and his mother, Pauline, had a special bond. My uncle Raymond was very, very close to his mother. She, there was no guessing that he was her favorite child. The family eventually moved to Idaho,
Starting point is 00:04:42 but when World War II broke out, Raymond and his brother joined the Navy. Raymond found his true home when he was stationed in Louisiana. Both of my uncles were in the Merchant Marines. My uncle Raymond, he ended up in New Orleans. He fell in love with that place, and so he stayed there. It is party time all the time when you are down there.
Starting point is 00:05:06 And my uncle liked to party. After the war ended, Raymond needed to find a nine-to-five. With a natural talent for numbers, he eventually earned an accounting degree and found a job at a local shipping company. He was an accountant. Tidewater was a relatively small company, so he was kind of on the ground floor of a company that is now global. Raymond earned a reputation for having his hard work matched by his kind nature.
Starting point is 00:05:36 In the years I've worked with him, even through the mistakes I've made, I've never once heard him raise his voice or seen him get mad ever. Even through the mistakes I've made, I've never once heard him raise his voice or seen him get mad, ever. In 1960, Raymond was ready to settle down with the love of his life. He married his longtime girlfriend, Thace Bow,
Starting point is 00:06:01 who Raymond affectionately called, Fricks. Fricks was vibrant and beautiful. They loved each other. and she died at home. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried.
Starting point is 00:06:14 I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried. I was a little bit worried suddenly and was found by my uncle.
Starting point is 00:06:28 And she died at home. He was devastated. Raymond did his best to overcome his grief by frequenting the local bar and making friends. But he still wished for a woman in his life. And in 1978, his wish came true when he met vivacious 28-year-old Ann Plew. Raymond and Ann had met in a bar.
Starting point is 00:06:53 His wife had died. He was lonely. They were both widowed. Ann had been married when she was in her 20s to a man up in Indiana. He had passed away unexpectedly, suddenly, and because of that, there was a quick bonding that she had with Raymond over the loss of his spouse.
Starting point is 00:07:14 Ann Gibson was born in Louisville, Indiana, on May 29, 1949, to a blue-collar family in America's heartland. Ann's mom and dad was Earl and Eileen Gibson. She was really family orientated when she was young, but being an only child, she got away with a lot of stuff. After growing up in a tight-knit family that took care of their own,
Starting point is 00:07:38 Ann decided to pay it forward by caring for others. She went to school to be a nurse. She went to St. Anne's at South Bend for the Notre Dame. In September of 1977, Anne met and fell in love with David Plue. But sadly, less than a year later in 1978, David died under suspicious circumstances. And shortly after his death, Anne moved her parents to a beautiful home an hour outside of New Orleans, hoping for a fresh start.
Starting point is 00:08:16 It was a 5,000 square foot home out in the country, outside of Pekahoon, Mississippi. I first met Anne in 1987. Anne was a powerful woman, very pretty, and very pleasant to talk to, but very intimidating, because she had such large shoulders and long, skinny legs. Even though she had a budding nursing career just over the Mississippi state line in New Orleans, Ann craved a romantic
Starting point is 00:08:49 connection. And when she met 55-year-old Raymond Gates, she was instantly drawn to his gentle disposition. He was the most gentle man. Old fashioned, opened the door. He really was a good man. Old fashioned, opened the door. He really was a good man. Despite a 26-year age gap, in December of 1978, Ann and Raymond decided to get married and start
Starting point is 00:09:17 a new life together after only a few months of dating. Ann's relationship with Raymond was a very quick one. She married him less than a year after the passing of her first spouse. He'd give her about anything he wanted. If he could, he'd give it to her. In the early 1980s, Raymond built a beautiful house for Ann just outside of New Orleans in Araby, Louisiana. The newlyweds would get visits from family and friends, including Ann's wife, who was a very good friend. Raymond built a beautiful house for Ann just outside of New Orleans in Araby, Louisiana.
Starting point is 00:09:46 The newlyweds would get visits from family and friends, including Ann's longtime pal from Indiana, Tim Conwell. Tim Conwell was a high school friend of Ann's. He was a fixture in her life throughout her life. And it wasn't uncommon for him to show up at different periods of her life. Even though me and Ann were close, you know, there wasn't anything in between us, anything for Raymond to worry about.
Starting point is 00:10:09 He was a happy-go-guy, a likable guy. But on the afternoon of October 7, 1987, after nine years of marriage, Ann Gates has become a widow once again, having just discovered Raymond brutally murdered in their home. He had been apparently blundered to death. He suffered severe head wounds, numerous head wounds.
Starting point is 00:10:37 On closer inspection, there was no evidence of any forced entry. The windows were closed, the doors were essentially closed, and it only opened one to discover Raymond's body and report it. Whoever went into the house just walked in. But there appeared to be no burglary.
Starting point is 00:10:57 Detectives hone in on a potential murder weapon. Looking at the lacerations and looking at the fractures to Raymond's skull, investigators were able to make a determination that it was a long, thin instrument that caused these injuries. There was a fireplace set that they would use. The fireplace poker itself was gone. An inconspicuous clue indicates when the crime may have occurred. On the TV stand, the TV guide was still open to the day of October 3rd, and there was blood
Starting point is 00:11:38 spatter on the TV guide. With the date of the crime believed to be on October 3rd, detectives must now speak to Ann to establish the last time she was home. After we evaluated what went on in the house, I went outside and I spoke to the wife. She said she was there September 30th, which would have been three days before this happened. According to Ann, she can't fathom who could have wanted Raymond dead. He was well-liked. He had no enemies. She doesn't know why anybody would do this to Raymond.
Starting point is 00:12:21 She tells police that Richard Newt was escorting her home when she discovered her husband's body. Do this to Raymond. She tells police that Richard Newt was escorting her home when she discovered her husband's body. While Richard appears to be a friend from work, Ann reveals there's more to that story that instantly throws up red flags. Ann portrayed their marriage to be an open relationship. The fact that Ann showed up to this crime
Starting point is 00:12:44 scene with her boyfriend, a crime scene where her husband was discovered murdered, is certainly going to get the attention of investigators. Coming up, investigators delve into the love life of Ann Gates. Richard Newt was quite a nervous guy. The House of Cards started to fall with the murder of Raymond Gates.
Starting point is 00:13:07 And the investigation will reveal a disturbing pattern. In her statement, she said she was tired of being called the Black Widow. MUSIC MUSIC October 7, 1987, Araby, Louisiana. St. Bernard Parish deputies are investigating the murder of 65-year-old Raymond Gates.
Starting point is 00:13:32 Of interest to police is the fact that Raymond's wife, Ann, found the body while her lover, Richard Newt, waited outside. Raymond was older than Ann, and Ann had claimed that she had an open relationship than Ann, and Ann had claimed that she had an open relationship with him and was having relationships on the side with other people. With their sights set on Ann, detectives
Starting point is 00:13:58 ask her and Richard to the station for further questioning. We always start with a spouse. If there's no forced entry, you start with whoever lives in the house, because they have access to that house. Anne claims she hasn't been home since September 30, three days before the murder was believed to have happened. And her explanation for her absence
Starting point is 00:14:25 is tied to her unorthodox marital arrangement. Anne explained that she lived a couple of days a week with her husband in Araby, Raymond, and a couple of days a week with her boyfriend, Richard Newt in Metairie. And she lived a couple of days a week with her boyfriend, Richard Newt in Metairie, and she lived a couple of days a week with her parents in Pekeyune, Mississippi. She was two days here, two days there, two days over here.
Starting point is 00:14:54 Seems like she was never alone. She really offered no explanation as to why. It's just the way she lived. Raymond had been married to her for approximately eight years, and she did just pretty much whatever she wanted to do. And Raymond was OK with that. There's times that she met other people, and she would be gone a month or two, you know.
Starting point is 00:15:22 Whenever she wanted to go back home, Raymond would take her back. Apparently Raymond was OK with the nature of this relationship. Ann was significantly younger than Raymond. She claimed that she loved him, but she also clearly wanted to spend time with other people. According to Ann, at the time of his murder,
Starting point is 00:15:41 Raymond wasn't seeing anyone else. Detectives ask Ann where she was on October 3rd. Her story was that she had been staying in Metairie and that Raymond called her to tell her that he was going to be out of town for a couple of days. Anne says she told Raymond she would come by the house to pick up her mail before he left. And she claims that was the last by the house to pick up her mail before he left.
Starting point is 00:16:05 And she claims that was the last time she spoke to her husband. Detectives turn to Richard Newt to see if his story lines up with Anne's. Richard Newt was a security guard at the hospital where Anne worked as a nurse, Lakeside Hospital in Mettery. He was quite a nervous guy. I don't know if he was always nervous
Starting point is 00:16:30 or if he was nervous by the time he encountered the police. Like Ann, Richard is asked about his whereabouts on October 3rd. He said he was working that day. He didn't have a car, and if he needed to go somewhere, he would call Ann, and Ann would either take him or give him her car and pick it up later. One important detail from Richard's account is consistent with Ann's.
Starting point is 00:17:00 According to Richard, Raymond knew everything that was going on. He knew she was was going on. He knew she was sleeping with Richard. Despite claims by both Ann and Richard that Raymond was aware of their romance, investigators have to question the authenticity of their statements.
Starting point is 00:17:17 Richard was clearly a person of interest based on the nature of his relationship with Ann. Could this possibly be a situation where he came and had a confrontation with Raymond and he was actually the perpetrator of this crime? But as investigators continue to press Richard, he doesn't come across as a calculated killer driven by jealousy.
Starting point is 00:17:42 To him, it was just somebody to sleep with a couple of days a week. She didn't love him. He didn't love her. He was very, very nervous, but not in a way where it appeared that he was trying to hide anything. My guess is he had probably never seen a dead body or a murder victim.
Starting point is 00:18:03 I think his behavior was typical of someone encountering a body of a murder victim. Anne and Richard both claim they had been at work on October 3rd. Until they can check their alibis, and with nothing concrete to hold them on, detectives let Anne and Richard go free. They then reach out to family and friends of Raymond concrete to hold them on, detectives let Ann and Richard go free.
Starting point is 00:18:25 They then reach out to family and friends of Raymond to gather more information about their victim. I was told what happened, and it was brutal. It was like a crime of anger and hatred. And it devastated my grandmother. He never seemed like the guy that would have enemies. He was just too laid back, jovial, happy. Here you have significant blunt force trauma
Starting point is 00:18:52 to the head and face area. And those wounds are pretty up close and personal. This is a perpetrator that's highly motivated in order to inflict these severe injuries. While detectives continue looking for leads, Raymond's family begins making funeral arrangements. But there is one voice that is noticeably absent from the table.
Starting point is 00:19:17 If they were married, I don't know why I was doing the funeral arrangements because she should have been, and she was not there, or doing any of that. Word of Ann's absence in planning her own husband's funeral gets back to investigators and piques their suspicions. That's really telling from an investigative standpoint, not what you would expect from somebody who's actually grieving the loss of their spouse.
Starting point is 00:19:41 But before they can follow up with her, a co-worker of Raymond's contacts police and fills them in on the circumstances of the death of Ann's first husband nine years earlier. During the investigation, there was a witness who showed up by the name of Evelyn, who had information about Ann's first husband, who had been killed.
Starting point is 00:20:02 And she said that he was an unsolved case in Indiana. Ann had told me, did Raymond tell you I was married before? And I said, no. And she said, well, my husband died. And we're still trying to figure out why. We don't know why. He died. Here you have a situation where Ann was married
Starting point is 00:20:29 not once but twice, and both husbands end up getting murdered. And that's really telling. And because of that, we in the business of investigating and prosecuting homicides don't believe in coincidences such as that. Coming up, details about Ann's first marriage create a damning portrait of a femme fatale. David's body was discovered on a rural road.
Starting point is 00:20:56 He had been shot execution style in the back of the head. The authorities in Indiana thought Ann had something to do with it. And a familiar face in Ann's life gets sucked into a hurricane of accusations. The cops talked to me several times and I was actually a suspect. It's all a lighthearted nightmare on our podcast, Morbid. We're your hosts. I'm Alina Urquhart.
Starting point is 00:21:29 And I'm Ash Kelly. And our show is part true crime, part spooky, and part comedy. The stories we cover are well researched. He claimed and confessed to officially killing up to 28 people. With a touch of humor. I'd just like to go ahead and say that if there's no band called malevolent deity, that is pretty great. A dash of sarcasm and just garnished a bit with a little bit of cursing.
Starting point is 00:21:51 This mother f***er lied. Like a liar. Like a liar. And if you're a weirdo like us and love to cozy up to a creepy tale of the paranormal. Or you love to hop in the way back machine and dissect the details of some of history's most notorious crimes. You should tune in to our podcast, Morbid. Follow Morbid on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to episodes early and ad free by joining Wondery Plus and the Wondery app or on Apple podcasts.
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Starting point is 00:23:01 lots of fighting. Tasha, I have to defend myself. Celebrating 25 years of reality TV with your favorites. I have diarrhea. You cannot do this to me. What in gay hell have I got myself into? The Goat, premiering on Freebie and Prime Video on May 9th. As investigators continue working the murder of Raymond Gates,
Starting point is 00:23:24 they've just discovered a shocking fact from Raymond's coworker about his wife, Anne's, previous marriage. During the investigation, we learned that her first husband had been killed. Then I started asking questions about the first husband, who was David Poo. He lived in Indiana, and it was Rush County.
Starting point is 00:23:46 So I called the Rush County Indiana Sheriff's Department and spoke to the sheriff. When investigators learned that Ann's prior husband had also been murdered, that's extremely telling. It's not coincidental normally, and this is something that required probing. Indiana police relay that the homicide occurred less than a decade ago on the night of May 28th, 1978. There were no witnesses, no arrests were ever made, and it remains an open case. David and I were close to each other.
Starting point is 00:24:26 When I got the call from dad about David, he said I needed to sit down. He proceeded to tell me in a moment that David had been killed, shot. I was at the loss for sure. Life was never going to be the same without him. David was younger than me by a good bit. It's heartbreaking.
Starting point is 00:24:57 David's body was discovered on a rural road. He was killed in 1978. He was shot with a.38 revolver twice in the back of the head, execution style. . There was very little evidence. There would be no shell casings because it's a revolver, and the revolver had not been recovered.
Starting point is 00:25:22 . and the revolver had not been recovered. How David Ploo ended up on a rural road in Indiana where he was murdered is still a mystery, but all indications are that he was going to meet someone. We don't really know who or why. Indiana police investigated every possible scenario, including a loose theory that this may have been a drug-related shooting. They were wondering whether there was drug dealing or something going on, but David certainly didn't do drugs. He didn't smoke.
Starting point is 00:26:00 He didn't drink. Like Raymond Gates, David Plloo also served his country, and after his time in Vietnam, he got a job as a factory worker at Chrysler. David worked at Chrysler plant from the time that he got back in Vietnam till the time of his death. The Indiana sheriff tells investigators
Starting point is 00:26:24 that their suspicions were raised when they spoke to David's widow, Anne. She was in the hospital recovering from an elective surgery, so she had a pretty good alibi to cover herself. But it appeared that the Indiana authorities didn't trust that she was not somehow involved. And profited from the life insurance of the death of her first husband, David. Perhaps that was the motive for why she might have him killed. While the murder weapon was never found, police have an idea about where it may have come from.
Starting point is 00:27:05 Investigators continued to look into the.38 murder weapon. Interestingly, they found a news article where Tim Conwell had described a theft of a.38 out of his vehicle about a year prior to David's murder. Had Ann stolen a gun from her longtime friend, Tim Conwell, to be used in the killing of her first husband, David? Without the recovery of the actual murder weapon, there's really no way to say definitively whether those two things could be related.
Starting point is 00:27:37 Since Ann had an ironclad alibi, Indiana police believed someone must have helped her, and their theory points to one of Ann's closest allies. an iron-clad alibi, Indiana police believed someone must have helped her, and their theory points to one of Ann's closest allies. Ann Gates and Tim Conwell were the prime suspects in that murder. They learned of her relationship with Tim Conwell. Because of Tim Conwell's relationship with Ann,
Starting point is 00:28:06 he became, I guess what you would say, a peripheral suspect. The cops talked to me several times. And I was actually a suspect. They never arrested me. They didn't have anything on me. As far as I know, the case is still open. But as far as I'm concerned,
Starting point is 00:28:27 I'm not a suspect or anything else. Shortly after David's murder, Ann, his wife of less than a year, made sure to take care of one piece of business before leaving Indiana for Louisiana. When David was killed in 1978, he worked at Chrysler factory, and he had $100,000 insurance policy on him.
Starting point is 00:28:53 The beneficiary was our mom. Evidently, Ann did not like that, so David changed the name of the beneficiary from mom to Ann. Once it was changed, David was gone. She got the proceeds fairly quickly and went on her merry way. Investigators in Louisiana look into the possibility
Starting point is 00:29:19 that Ann had gained financially from Raymond's murder as well. And they quickly learn he did, in fact, have a life insurance policy worth $82,000. By all accounts, Ann was fairly materialistic. And here you have a situation where Raymond was giving her lavish gifts, building her a home. And it still wasn't enough. She was a very greedy person.
Starting point is 00:29:42 She liked material things. So one might wonder, well, if she's getting everything she needs from Raymond anyway, what could be the motive? And my response to that as a homicide prosecutor is greed is often the motive. Investigators still lack physical evidence of Ann's possible involvement. But when they get a crucial tip from a mailman
Starting point is 00:30:04 about her whereabouts the day of her husband's grisly murder, of Ann's possible involvement. But when they get a crucial tip from a mailman about her whereabouts the day of her husband's grisly murder, it gives them the break they need. The mailman had came forward, and he informed the investigation that he had seen Ann Gates' Cadillac, white in color, in the driveway on October the 3rd, 1987. Coming up, with Ann in detectives' crosshairs,
Starting point is 00:30:33 she finds a convenient scapegoat. The time of the 1978 murder until the time of the 1987 murder, in the background, all along was Tim Conwell. And detectives may find themselves in more literal crosshairs. The inside of his truck was AR-15, 23 round clip, 40 round clip, and 49 rounds of ammunition. and the police are investigating the murder of her husband. We're going to find out what happened.
Starting point is 00:31:05 We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened.
Starting point is 00:31:21 We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to find out what happened. We're going to the home in days. But the neighborhood mailman came forward. He revealed that he had a clear recollection that on October 3rd, he saw Ann's Cadillac parked in the driveway of the home. With this new revelation, on December 8th, 1987, Ann is formally charged with murder. Little bits of the story started coming out through the newspaper.
Starting point is 00:31:44 They said, I just hope they can prove it. The story was pretty big news. There were numerous articles in the newspapers in the area. She was dubbed the Black Widow. But on December 11th, just three days after her arrest, Anne is allowed to bond out of jail and granted a reprieve from being in custody. Anne asked me to help her make bail.
Starting point is 00:32:12 When she was released, there was a mob of reporters out front of the courthouse. They had dubbed her the Black Widow of New Orleans. I had parked behind the courthouse, so we went out the back way to avoid any reporters. And I took her home. Ann spends the next 15 months waiting for her trial to begin. But just three days before she is scheduled to appear
Starting point is 00:32:44 in court, detectives receive a call that they were not expecting. I had gotten a phone call from the assistant district attorney who told me that Ann Gates was going to enter a plea of no-lo contendry to the manslaughter of Ring. By entering this plea, Ann avoids the harsher charge of murder and throws a curveball in the investigation. A no lo contendere plea is often also referred
Starting point is 00:33:12 to as a no contest plea. In Latin, it means I do not contest. And it's basically saying that you're accepting the conviction without accepting guilt. Despite their belief that Ann is directly responsible for Raymond's murder, detectives are there to witness her no contest plea on March 10th, 1989. I showed up in court, she entered the plea, she was sentenced to 10 years in Louisiana prison,
Starting point is 00:33:39 and she was willing to talk to me about the Raymond Gates case. She, with the permission of her lawyers, gave a statement. In her statement, she said she was tired of being called the Black Widow. Ann claims that she did not kill Raymond, but now admits that she knows who did. As part of her plea deal, Anne shares
Starting point is 00:34:09 a very detailed version of events with detectives. Anne's statement basically told the entire story of the murder of Raymond Gates with almost all of the blame on Tim Conwell. Anne says on the morning of October 3, she picked up her friend Tim Conwell from the airport in New Orleans after he flew in from Indiana. Together, they stayed in a motel.
Starting point is 00:34:39 According to Anne Gates, she and Tim went to the house in Araby on October 3rd, 1987. Her husband Raymond was home. Raymond and Tim watched football and ordered a pizza. She went to take a shower. When she was in the shower, she heard Raymond and Tim arguing. And she come out of the shower and she saw Tim hitting Raymond over the head with this fireplace poker. And by the time she got to him, he had hit him seven or eight times in the head with this. She claimed that Raymond had his hands up in a defensive mode
Starting point is 00:35:29 and that he was saying to Ann, I've always been good to you. You know, why are you doing this to me? Even her own story indicates that even Raymond knew she was somehow involved in this. And then outlines how she helped dispose of the evidence. According to Ann Gates, when they left the residence, they put some of the items that they considered to be potential evidence of the crime into a little garbage can, took that with them.
Starting point is 00:36:00 Ann claims that once she and Tim found out that the evidence was there, they would have been able to be potential evidence of the crime into a little garbage can, took that with them. Ann claims that once she and Tim threw the murder weapon into a body of water, Tim left New Orleans, but not before threatening her if she went to the police. According to Ann, Tim Conwell was constantly threatening her. Ann was a liar.
Starting point is 00:36:28 You know, a lot of times when she's younger, she'd tell a lie when she knew you didn't tell the truth. She's a pathological liar. After she had given her statement, she is taken to St. Gabriel Prison, which is a female prison in Louisiana. is taken to St. Gabriel Prison, which is the female prison in Louisiana. Ann's bold allegations against Tim
Starting point is 00:36:51 compel investigators to make a move. I put the facts together, and I gave it to a circuit court judge to see if he would issue a warrant. And he did. In lieu of a manhunt, Tim is lured to the New Orleans courthouse under the guise of testifying in Ann's defense. Tim Conwell was requested to be in court. It was expected that he would show up for court, so there were detectives and deputies waiting for him.
Starting point is 00:37:25 I was sitting there, and all of a sudden, I got the windows down, and, are you Tim Conwell? Yes, I am. Would you put your hands on the steering wheel? And I put my hands on the steering wheel, and I looked around, and I mean, everybody's got their guns pulled on me and all this stuff, and they arrested me for second-degree murder.
Starting point is 00:37:49 I arrested him, and inside of his truck was AR-15, 23-round clip, 40-round clip, and 49 rounds of ammunition. They took me in. I sat in this deputy's office by myself for hours or so. I advised him of his rights. He made no statements. He showed no emotion.
Starting point is 00:38:18 He refused to sign the rights form. He was not asked any questions. He was not asked any questions, and he was booked accordingly. While possessing a gun may arouse detective suspicions, it does not prove that Tim was involved in Raymond's murder. Given the lies, Ann has already been caught telling, was she just setting Tim up to take the fall? She tries to act like she's very fearful of Tim Conwell and that she believes his threats.
Starting point is 00:38:52 Suddenly things flip, and all of a sudden, he's now charged with murder himself and facing the prospects of a trial. ... Coming up, the prosecution of Tim Conwell backfires. They offered me a deal. I said, the guilty will plea bargain and I'm innocent, so I'm going to try to prove it that I'm innocent.
Starting point is 00:39:18 And a new love emerges in the midst of evil. She says, do you still love me? After pleading no contest to the charge of manslaughter in the violent death of her husband Raymond, Anne Gates now claims it is her longtime friend, Tim Conwell, who is the true killer. This information was just another piece of the puzzle. With only Ann's testimony, prosecutors in Louisiana harbor doubts about the strength of their case
Starting point is 00:39:55 against Tim Conwell. They offered me a deal if I wanted to plead guilty to accessory after the fact that they would go in, they'd have all the paperwork done in 30 minutes. I said, the guilty will plead bargain. And I'm innocent, so I'm going to trial to prove it that I'm innocent. Everything was set up. I was there for a show. In September of 1990, Tim Conwell's trial begins. Trials in the 80s were very different than trials that we conduct now.
Starting point is 00:40:36 With a lack of forensics, this was largely a circumstantial case against Tim, with the only direct evidence really coming from Ann and her testimony. The prosecution swings for the fences and puts Ann's testimony on full display. She had no qualms about walking right over and looking at him right in the face and telling the jury, he killed my husband.
Starting point is 00:41:02 In this case, there was no he said, because he didn't say anything. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital.
Starting point is 00:41:12 I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital.
Starting point is 00:41:20 I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. I had to go to the hospital. When the jury came back, they notified the judge they were dead now. The jury was not able to reach a decision. This was a hung jury. I think, honestly, the fact that he didn't say anything
Starting point is 00:41:35 worked in his favor. There was a seed of doubt. The jurors probably were not comfortable sending a man to prison if they weren't themselves sure that they had concrete evidence to do so. there is no retrial. In Louisiana, when there's a mistrial or a hung jury, the prosecutor has a year to take the case back
Starting point is 00:42:12 for another trial, which did not happen in this case. So basically, it's the end of the road for the case in Louisiana. And while Anne Gates is serving her 10-year prison sentence, the case in Louisiana. While Ann Gates is serving her 10-year prison sentence, she aims to resolve one lingering issue from behind bars. She ended up with a lenient sentence. And as I recall, she thought she should still
Starting point is 00:42:39 be the beneficiary to his insurance policy. Lawyers of Ann Gates argue that since she was not proven guilty of murder, she is entitled to her portion of Raymond's $82,000 insurance policy. Because Ann entered a no lo contendere, or no contest plea to the homicide, there were limited uses that that conviction could be used against her,
Starting point is 00:43:05 as is the case in many states. And because of that, Ann was successful in getting 40% of the life insurance proceeds after litigating that with Raymond's family. I just think that's incredible. That's ridiculous. She's that vindictive. Get rid of them, I'll get the insurance money, finished, and I'll be gone. After serving less than half of her 10-year sentence, Ann Gates is released from prison
Starting point is 00:43:32 and reconnects with an unlikely friend. The initial contact with me banned. After she got out of prison, I don't know how long she'd been out for a while. I was in prison for a long time. I was in prison for a long time. and connects with an unlikely friend. The initial contact was made banned. After she got out of prison, I don't know how long. She'd been out for a while. I'd let her know, but I was disappointed.
Starting point is 00:43:52 I was hurt. Even after she attempted to frame him for Raymond's murder, Tim remained a constant in Ann's life to the point of exchanging vows. A couple months later, she says, I'm asking you to marry me. I said, you are? Yeah. She says, do you still love me?
Starting point is 00:44:10 And I says, well, I says, I always did love you for years. We got married on the highs of March, and that was in 1997. When I found out that Ann and Tim got married, basically it was like, holy sh-t. The two lived happily for 19 years until Ann's death from kidney failure on August 16, 2016. She was a good wife to me, and I loved her till the day she died, and I still love her. With many questions remaining about Raymond Gates' murder,
Starting point is 00:44:54 investigators may never learn what actually happened. Katrina hit St. Bernard Parish with 100% devastation. Files or documents or pictures, all of that was gone. You had nothing. This case was lost in Hurricane Katrina. One thing that hasn't been lost is the memory of the kindhearted soul of Raymond Gates. It was insufficient and unfair to my uncle
Starting point is 00:45:30 that she paid so little for what she did. That was devastating. He was just such a good man. So that's how I'm going to remember him, because he needs to be remembered for that, not for this one blunder in his life of marrying Anne Gates. To this day, the murder of David Ploo remains unsolved. Almost all records of the murder of Raymond Gates were lost in Hurricane Katrina. No new charges were ever filed.
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