Snapped: Women Who Murder - Cynthia Philips

Episode Date: March 10, 2024

A family man is gunned down on the side of the road in a small town in Texas, and detectives unearth a perpetrator who's hiding more than one shocking skeleton in the closet.Season 27 Episode 16Originally aired: June 24, 2020Watch 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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She was a flashy country girl who could love him and leave him. Every man she came in contact with was mesmerized by her. But a dashing stranger seemed to finally lasso her heart. He was younger. He was handsome. He did everything in the world for her. Their plans for the future were full of promise. Until a violent crime changes everything. Lightning strikes, but people don't get shot in the middle

of the road by coincidence. As the investigation unfolds, long-kept secrets come to the surface. She was gone and taken many out of the accounts and sprained large amounts of money. We determined that there were two other cases we had to look at. He'd come up missing.

A couple days later, they found his body floating. She went to his neck broke and laid at the bottom of the ladder so there was like an accident. Once you resort to murder, then there's nothing you wouldn't do to get what you want. And before it's all over, a prisoner comes forward. It never happened, never happened. They tried to take everything and make it what they wanted. It's a quiet spring night as Officer Dustin Munn patrols the rural Texas town 55 miles south of Dallas.

It's still a rural community. I wouldn't classify it as suburban. It's just your typical old-fashioned small town. At 11.22 p.m., Officer Munn gets an alert on his radio. I've got a call of shots fired in the vicinity of West Park Row. It's kind of on the fringe of town. We responded to shots in the area fairly frequently.

Usually someone's shooting at a varmint of some sort, scov, possum. I certainly did not expect to find what I found. or scout, possum. I certainly did not expect to find what I found. As Officer Munn arrives, he makes an unsettling discovery, a car sitting in the middle of the road. The vehicle was running. The headlights were on.

The door was slightly open. As I exited my patrol vehicle, my first concern was for any occupants. That's where I saw the body laying behind the vehicle. Immediately went to him to see what his status was, and checked to see if he needed medical assistance. It was obvious that he'd been shot multiple times. On the man's chest is a name tag that reads, Toby Matthews.

Mr. Matthews was not breathing. It was obvious that his wounds were incompatible with life. Lamar Colorado native Toby Matthews never had big city dreams. While his friends went off to college after high school, Toby stuck around, taking a job at the local bar, Opels. Toby grew up in a small town from all accounts. He was one of these people who, you know, everybody, everybody knew him, everybody liked him. It was at Opels one night in 1994 when he first got up the nerve to talk

to 29-year-old Cynthia Phillips. She always had fancy looks to her. Real country, but fancy. Kind of glamorous. With her curly blonde hair and the little cowgirl button-up shirt and those long fingernails. She stood out.

And I think she liked it that way. To 25-year-old Toby, Cynthia was everything he wanted in a woman. Fun, flirty, and beautiful. For Cynthia, the feeling was mutual. I know they spent a lot of time together. She seemed a lot happier. There was times that we'd see him just dancing in the kitchen or dancing in the living room with a country song playing.

Though the two hit it off immediately, Cynthia had a shocking confession to make. She had a husband that she was married to. When Cynthia Conradie met her future husband Ron Phillips in 1984, she was a mother of two children looking for her happily ever after. Ron Phillips became, I would say, some people said, smitten with Cynthia. When I first met him, I thought, you know, I'm a very nice couple. And they got together and I got married. To support his new family, in 1993, Ron purchased a slaughterhouse and moved the family to the

small town of Haswell, Colorado, population 61. They knew the proprietor of L&M processing and they knew he was wanting to get out of the business, so they made him even offer to purchase the plant. They had a good thriving business. It's a pretty good endeavor, you know? And it's hard work. And I kind of admire her and Ron for taking it over. But keeping the business afloat meant long hours away

from home. Ron worked all the time. Yeah, he was constantly working. And then when he wasn't, he was home with the kids and Cindy. I don't think she was quite used to living in Haswell, because there was nothing or hardly nobody there. Though Cynthia tried to make the best of it, things weren't always easy at home.

She never really went that far into it. She just let me know that, yeah, he was abusive. After she met Toby, Cynthia discovered what it was like to really be in love. It didn't feel to me like a really close intimate relationship. When she was married to Ron with Toby, she really loved that boy. She would tell Ron that she was working and just go up and meet Toby.

They were so much more cuddly. Lovey dovey. In 1996, after two years of sneaking around, Cynthia packed up her children and ran away to be with Toby. She left Ron for Toby. They lived here in Lamar for probably close to a year at which point they left and moved to Corsica, Texas. While Cynthia stayed home with the girls, Toby supported the family by working at a local Kmart, but made the most of his time at home. It was a great dad, you know?

The girls did anything that they needed, they got. He was a great provider. I think they latched onto him real quick as another dad, and they really enjoyed being around him. Then, in the fall of 1997, a friend of Cynthia's father named Rick Boyd reached out to Cynthia needing a place to stay. Rick worked as an exterminator, so the justification for him moving in with Toby and Cynthia was to be able to split income and have a little bit easier of a life. As the spring of 1998 rolled in,

the happy couple discussed plans for finally tying the knot. Every time I'd see him together, she'd be sitting on his lap, or they'd be kissing, giggling, and carrying on. They had a connection. But Cynthia and Toby's plans to say, I do, came to a sudden halt. On April 14, 1998, when Corsicana police officer Dustin Munn

finds Toby's body on a rural road. Initially, they saw the bullet entrance went to his left temple. And then he had several other shots in the upper torso chest area. I think maybe one on an elbow. He had a bit of a stunned look on his face, whether that had been the person that committed that act

or circumstances in general. But the expression on his face was shocked. Coming up, a strange visitor shakes up the crime scene. He was fairly flat. I think we all saw it as somewhat suspicious. And leads police to a potential theory. The fact that you have two men living with one woman under one roof, that screams out to be investigated.

MUSIC In the early morning hours of April 15, 1998, a rural road in Corsicana, Texas is transformed into a crime scene as officers investigate the shooting death of 29-year-old Toby Matthews. It's interesting when you respond on any death scene, there are things that you can intuitively gain from that immediate snapshot. And something just told me that he was stunned by what had happened to him. As police surveyed the scene, they

discover seven 9-millimeter shells. Police assumed that there was some kind of an altercation. You know, it's not uncommon to have a robbery that has gone wrong. The victim still retained his identification, money that he had on him. There was no signs of anything being taken or known about being taken from inside the vehicle.

And the vehicle itself was still sitting in the middle of the roadway running. If robbery isn't the motive, perhaps another crime had taken place here. It could have appeared that it was a drug deal in the middle of the road. It seemed reasonable at that time to at least create a theory that he was stopping for someone that he knew,

given the location, the condition of the vehicle, and his position behind the vehicle. A quick background check turns up no prior drug convictions for Toby Matthews. We had no information at all that our victim had anything to do with narcotics in any way. So that did not seem plausible. So that did not seem plausible.

As investigators continue processing the crime scene, they're blinded by oncoming headlights. An individual pulled up on the scene at one point, inquiring about the vehicle, and if the person that was driving the vehicle was okay. The man introduces himself as Rick Boyd. He says he is looking for his friend and roommate, Toby Matthews. Toby had gone to the store to pick up some medication

for a sick little girl that was in the house. And he was sent, supposedly, to check on his whereabouts. It was peculiar that he would just suddenly pull up. Investigators break the tragic news that Toby is dead. Rick's reaction surprises them. Rick's demeanor was not that of someone who suddenly rolled up and found out that his friend was deceased. A normal reaction would be immediate signs of grief.

He was fairly flat. I think we all saw it as somewhat suspicious. Rick told police that he had been living with Toby and his wife, Cynthia. So police then went with Rick to Toby and Cynthia's house to notify Cynthia that Toby had been killed. Police and Rick find Cynthia at home and inform her of Toby's death.

She was visibly upset. When Cynthia regains her composure, the investigator asks her about Toby's whereabouts in the hours before his death. Toby had came home and one of the girls was sick and he was gonna go get some medicine. He was headed to the Kmart to pick up some cold medicine for Cynthia's daughter.

to pick up some cold medicine for Cynthia's daughter. Cynthia says that the Kmart is just minutes from their house. So when an hour passed and Toby hadn't returned, she began to worry. She couldn't find him. There wasn't cell phones and things like that. So he just hadn't come back from going to get the medicine. Cynthia says Rick left to go look for Toby while she stayed home to look after her daughters.

The next thing she remembers is Rick had come back and told her that Toby was dead. Cynthia tells the investigator that she can't think of anyone who would want to harm Toby. Mr. Matthews, as far as I recall, was a very likable, amicable, hardworking individual who was trying to make a new start in Corsicana.

A quick talk with Cynthia's daughters confirms her alibi. The daughter that was apparently sick had given a statement that she was not feeling well. Cynthia was there with her. But police still can't dismiss Rick Boyd's strange reaction at the crime scene. The fact that you have two men living with one woman under one roof that screams out to be investigated, one theory was at the time that he was actually

in love with Cynthia. And the only way to get to her would be to get Toby out of the way. The investigator asks Rick to come to the station for a formal interview. His statement to the police officers was that Cynthia woke him up and told him that Toby had gone out to get the cough medicine and didn't come back. When he is pressed about a possible relationship with Cynthia, Rick is adamant they have it all wrong. Rick actually explains that they just

had a longstanding relationship because he's a friend of her father's. The statement that he gave, he didn't indicate that he had anything to do with it. Investigators aren't so sure. We thought Rick did it to do with it. Investigators aren't so sure. We thought Rick did it to be with Cindy. When you look at love triangles, they don't work well, particularly under the same roof.

As investigators start to dig deeper into this potential love triangle, news of the murder begins to spread throughout town. News travels fast in small towns, so everyone has an opinion. And as I recall, the department got several of those opinions fairly quickly. Most of the calls come from Toby and Cynthia's friends

back in Colorado, who all bring up Cynthia's estranged husband, Ron Phillips. I noticed more growing up. I, you know, started to realize she really wasn't as close to Ron. Ron and Cindy didn't get along a whole lot. He was a quick temper. I never saw him, you know, grab her and smack her.

You know, I'm a yell at her. grab her and smack her, you know, and yell at her. Friends tell police that in March of 1995, a year before she ran away with Toby, Ron and Cynthia suffered a devastating house fire and came into an almost $16,000 insurance payout. That's when things started to fall apart. They got to fight. I don't know if she was getting frustrated with him, having to work so much.

But it was like, it was kind of her fault that he was working so much. According to friends, Ron and Cynthia's biggest marital issues seemed to revolve around one thing, money. She was gone and taking money out of the accounts and spending large amounts of money. She was gone and taking money out of the accounts and spending large amounts of money. She said she had to pick up this, this, and this

for the processing plant or for the house. She was kind of cleaning the money out of the bank accounts. The tension just got to be where it was ridiculous. He would yell or just stomp off or slam things down. According to friends, Cynthia would show up to Opal's bar covered in bruises. I was told that they had some physical fights. Coming up, a twisted theory emerges of jealousy, money, and revenge.

It's like this is enough. He's like, you guys need to know this. He kind of had her over barrel. There's really nothing she could do about it. She wanted to look like an actor, but she wanted him to hurt for who he was. Hey, it's Guy Razz here, the host of How I Built This, a podcast that gives you a front row seat to how some of the biggest products were built, and the innovators, entrepreneurs, and idealists behind them. Every week I speak to someone new.

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After the murder of 29-year-old Toby Matthews, investigators with the Corsicanna Police Department have decided to take a closer look at his girlfriend Cynthia Phillips' past relationship with her ex-husband, Ron Phillips. Law enforcement had heard the rumors of possible abuse that Cynthia Phillips was making against her husband. According to friends, when Cynthia left Ron, he barely had a penny to his name.

He just was run down so bad, and he got to where he started really, you could tell, it was aging him really, really, really bad. He was starting to lose weight, and his red hair wasn't so much red. It was starting to turn gray. Friends believe that in Ron's eyes, thanks to Toby, he had lost his wife, his money, and his business. The gossip, I mean, that's a lot everybody talked about. Everybody whispered, friends would say, hey, Ron,

look at what's going on, you know? It just like, I don't have time for it. I'm too busy now. So he just kind of would push it under the rug. But I know that at the end, he was getting upset. Before police can reach Ron to get his side of the story, they call Cynthia and learn the rumor mill of small town Corsicana had started to turn on her. Corsicana is largely a conservative town. Most people attend church on Sundays. Everyone

knows each other. There's an inherent tendency to talk. People started to have some suspicions. According to Cynthia, rumors that she's involved in Toby's death were spreading around town. It was traveled fast in small towns, so everyone has an opinion. And particularly, people raise eyebrows at those types of living relationships. In a conservative small town, Cindy likely would have been ostracized almost immediately

or at least kept at arm's length from most anyone after coming to Corsicanon. She would have been looked at with certain suspicion. Now, hoping to set the record straight, Cynthia wants to talk to police once again. She offered to take a polygraph. If you truly want to clear your name, that's a good way to get out in front of something,

particularly when you don't feel like you're believed. Cynthia schedules her polygraph for April 28, two weeks after Toby's murder. At that point, we really don't have any place to look until someone, something comes forward. We get another leave. I mean, it's kind of a dead end right now. But just a week before Cynthia's polygraph,

the investigation takes a startling turn when a man named Billy Bear Slaughter calls the Kiowa Colorado Police Department claiming to have information about the case. He was obviously upset that this had happened to Toby. Him and Toby were best friends in LaMaur, and he wanted to get justice for Toby. I remember when we talked to him, it's like,

this is enough. He's like, you guys need to know this. On April 21, 1998, investigators sit down with Billy Bear Slaughter. To meet Billy Slaughter, you wouldn't think he was that bad of a character. But, you know, he tried to portray himself as a rough Ombreu. I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you,

I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you, I'm telling you, had met Toby and Lamar at a bar, and Bear frequented that bar. Billy Slaughter had given us information about how she started spending more nights at Opal's with him. Bear says in March 1995, nearly three years

before Toby Matthew's death, Cynthia had confided to him about her marriage with Ron Phillips. She said her husband was beating her up. She was still like, live with him and tell him she was going elsewhere to come and see Toby at a farm. Bear says that was when Cynthia asked him for a little favor. She approached me because she heard from people that I would kill somebody for money.

She wanted to look like an accident, but she wouldn't have heard from you. According to Bear, Cynthia wanted the accident to occur at the couple's slaughterhouse. She wanted his neck broken late at the bottom of the ladder, so it was like an accident. Bear tells detectives Cynthia offered him $10,000 upfront and $10,000 after he completed the job.

He questioned her a lot, like, where are you getting this money? He knew enough about her that she doesn't have this kind of money. You know, I want to see the money. Cynthia Phillips said that she had't have this kind of money. You know, I want to see the money. Cynthia Phillips said that she had the money coming from the insurance. She had to be 10 times more than $8,000 and $100 bills and $3,000 and $50 bills.

When she paid him the money, it was like, well, maybe. Maybe she does want him gone. Bear says that if Cynthia thought he would kill her husband, she was mistaken. I think she was obviously serious, but I don't know that he ever even considered it. Still, Bear wanted to see for himself if Cynthia's accusations were true, so he followed Ron for weeks. But he didn't find what he expected.

I never saw him get violent ever. I never saw any marks. I never saw him hit or do anything. Law enforcement didn't find any basis for abuse allegations. Certainly no charges were ever filed on Ron. He worked on it. I saw the girl take a door grabbed by the door and I just decided the door and then it just

slammed into her face like that one day. But the bruise, she didn't know I saw her. Literally, she's telling Tony that her husband Ron did that. Bear tells police that's when he realized he was being set up. It was determined that there wasn't any grain of truth to the rumors of possible abuse that Cynthia Phillips was making against her husband, Ron Phillips. Bear was concerned because he knew

what kind of a person Sidney was and what she was capable of. So Bear did the only thing he could think to do. What's she going to do? I mean, she can't go to authorities. He kind of had her over barrel. I got her money, and I'm not gonna do what she wants me to do. There's really was nothing she could do about it. Bear says before he skipped town,

he told friends to warn Toby Matthews not to get mixed up with Cynthia. The minute that he heard Toby died, he knew that Cynthia had a hand in it. Coming up, Bear's allegations are only the beginning of this twisted tale. He didn't go to work one day, and a couple days later, they'd found his body floating.

She had multiple men on the hook. She's never been capable to this one. I don't understand. That's pure evil. OK. OK. OK. OK. OK.

OK. OK. OK. OK. Billy Bear Slaughter, former friend of 33-year-old Cynthia Phillips, has just accused her of paying him to murder her ex-husband, Ron Phillips. He told us the story of how Cynthia contacted him to kill Ron.

Then things started clicking a little bit better. Bear wanted to make sure that she paid for what she did to Toby. Investigators decide to take a closer look at Bear's story. They begin by reviewing Cynthia and Ron's insurance records. When they came to Colorado, they had life insurance on each other. And as the business progressed, they decided they needed more life insurance. They thought that the locker plan was a dangerous profession, so they figured that if anybody was going to get hurt or die to that business, they would make a double adept.

Cynthia and Ron obtained $250,000 worth of life insurance from a local agency. Had money been the motive for Cynthia's alleged murder for hire? And could Cynthia have tried the same scheme with Toby? To find out, detectives contact Cynthia's insurance agent in Corsicana, Texas. She had a life insurance policy on Toby, too.

The agent confirms the policy was for $100,000, and one week after Toby's death, Cynthia had called to collect. They're already talking distribution of funds for the insurance policy. So I think that's definitely your motive right there. It all makes sense. But is Toby her only victim?

Seeing a pattern developing, investigators decide to dig deeper into Cynthia's past, and they quickly discover another case out of Kansas involving her first husband, Les Conradi. August 1996 was the last time anyone saw him or talked to him. He'd come up missing. He didn't go to work one day, and a couple days later, they'd found his body floating. Detectives reach out to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the Edwards County Sheriff's Department. Officers tell their fellow lawmen what they know

about Les Conradi. I knew him. He was in school. When I was, like, in high school, Les was very shy. He was not a talkative person. He got along with everybody. Les and Cynthia started dating in 1982. At the time, Cynthia was still in high school

and pregnant with another man's baby, though friends say that didn't deter Les one bit. She was still young. I think she was only like 14 somewhere around there. Whenever she met him and had the baby and got married, he wanted to take care of Cynthia. It didn't matter what she did. After Cynthia's daughter was born in March of 1982,

the couple had a second child of their own. But by their two-year anniversary, 17-year-old Cynthia had cheated on Les with Ron Phillips. She doesn't care what anyone thinks. I think that kind of set the mindset for Cindy for future relationships that, well, if this one's not doing it for me, She doesn't care what anyone thinks. I think that kind of set the mindset for Cindy for future relationships that, well, if this one's not doing it for me, I can go somewhere else.

The couple divorced in 1986, and Cynthia left with Ron for Colorado. But Les wasn't out of Cynthia's life just yet. I think he was just scared that she was going to take off and he wasn't going to see those girls again. Cynthia spent years traveling back and forth to bring the girls to Les. But then, on August 22, 1996, Les suddenly disappeared

from a local bar. He got a phone call, the lady that was bartending. She remembered it was a woman's voice. On the other end of the line, she didn't know who it was. She gave the phone to Les. He talked for a few minutes, and then he left. Kansas authorities say that the next day, when Les didn't show up for work,

his parents filed a missing persons report. He was missing, and I think there was something more than him wandering off on his own. There had to be more to it, knowing him and his personality and his lifestyle. The KBI says that they interviewed everyone close to Les, including Cynthia. I'd say she was concerned.

There wasn't anything alarming or anything that stood out in that conversation. KBI investigators recall that after weeks of searching, they hit a dead end. Then, in September of 1996, they received a handwritten letter. There was some mention there about... I thought you guys could figure it out. When I left last, he was at the bridge on Jewel Road.

Kansas authorities say it didn't take long to find Les' body in the water near Jewel Road. They got the body out and then it was taken for, you know, autopsy. The cause of death was drowning. Up until now, Kansas authorities have found no evidence linking Cynthia to Les' death. But in the wake of Toby's murder,

authorities want to take a closer look. When we determined that there were two other cases, one involving a missing former husband and another involving an attempted or murder for hire scheme, on top of our own circumstance, we immediately dubbed her the Black Widow. KBI sends the letter they received off for fingerprint analysis.

On April 28, Cynthia arrives for her scheduled polygraph in Texas. Did you shoot Toby? Did you kill him? Did you conspire with anyone to kill Toby Matthews? I mean, so it was a pretty comprehensive polygraph. She thought she could beat it. She thought she could beat the polygraph. She didn't. She fl could meet it. She thought she could meet the Bolligraf. She didn't.

She flunked it. As Cynthia has read her results, officers from Kansas, Colorado, and Texas come into the room. She was shocked when we walked in the door. You could tell by the look on her face. She had no idea we were gonna be there. First, detectives from Colorado confront her with Bares' statement. You can tell by the look on her face. She had no idea we were going to be there. First, detectives from Colorado confront her

with Baer's statement. She couldn't really come up with a good answer for any of her questions. She denied the whole thing. As for Toby's murder, Cynthia claims the reason she failed her polygraph was because she was covering for the true killer. She said she had nothing to do with Tobi's death.

She was putting it all on Rick Floyd. Detectives bring Rick into the station and confront him with Cynthia's story. Rick admits to being involved in the murder plot, but he says that it was all Cynthia's idea. Toby was headed to the Kmart to pick up some cold medicine for Cynthia's daughter, who was sick.

That was the ruse that was used to get him away from the house. They flashed him over, and he got out of the vehicle voluntarily to meet them behind his vehicle. Cindy took the gun. She went over and shot him. MUSIC

Then Rick took the gun from Cindy. I said, let's make sure he's dead. Rick shot him in the head. So all the other wounds would have been Cynthia, but he actually shot him in the temple. Rick is immediately placed under arrest for first degree murder. As for Cynthia, even with Rick's confession,

it's not enough to charge her with Toby's murder. As for Cynthia, even with Rick's confession, it's not enough to charge her with Toby's murder. Texas law does not allow for conviction based on a accomplice witness testimony alone. While Texas authorities don't have enough evidence to arrest Cynthia, Colorado is another story. We charged Cynthia with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder for the attempted murder of Ron. She was crying, but it was sadness for the fact

that she had been caught. Coming up, could a new witness be the break investigators are looking for? This brought us crazy. And I'm in the cell with her. She's a very dangerous individual. And Cynthia Phillips tells her side of the story. If I'm guilty of anything, this love is the first degree.

That's what I would say. In May 1998, Colorado authorities arrest 33-year-old Cynthia Phillips for plotting the murder of her ex-husband, Ron Phillips. She also remains the prime suspect in the murders of her first husband, Les Conradie, and her boyfriend, Toby Matthews. If you look at the dictionary under Black Widow, they define it as the female spider that sucks all the life out of the male spider and leaves him for dead.

I think we have a pretty good example of that right here. It's just hard to believe that someone that you thought was fun, outgoing, and loving could do something so gruesome. As Cynthia sits in a Colorado jail, prosecutors in three different states struggled to build a case against her, starting with the mysterious letter Kansas authorities

received two years earlier. The day that Les's body was found, Kansas Bureau of Investigations got a letter in the mail describing where they could find Lessa's body. If there was no crime, why didn't you call in immediately? You know, or when you heard that he was missing. Why did they send it? In September 1998, investigators in Kansas

received the analysis of the letter. I'll give you three guesses as and whose fingerprint showed up on that. Ultimately, those fingerprints were determined to be for Cynthia Phillips. The only body I can see is Social Security for the kids. She was getting $1,200 a month for those two girls. Investigators theorize that when police didn't find Les' body fast enough,

Cynthia decided to give them a hint. After all, if there was no body, there weren't any death benefits. In this job, one thing I don't believe in is coincidence. Though Cynthia's fingerprints on the note are compelling, it's not enough to charge her with Les' murder. I just don't think there's any physical evidence that's going to take her talking or someone else. Then, on April 29th, 1999, investigators

receive a phone call from Cynthia's cellmate in Colorado, a 23-year-old woman named Manda Packard. I was sitting in jail with a murderer. I shouldn't have been there. I didn't commit a violent offense like murder. I just said, you know, I'm either going to have to move me out of the cell, or we're going to have to do something different,

because I'm not going back in that cell. This brought us crazy. Manda tells police that when she was sent to the county jail for a misdemeanor charge, she met and bonded with Cynthia. Cynthia was missing her kids too. She had two small girls. And so, yeah, she was kind of being motherly at first. However, Mandatel's police that Cynthia quickly

started to confide in her about the murder of Toby Matthews in Corsicano. She said she didn't want to be a Toby, but she needed money. Her and Rick needed money to go wherever they wanted to go. And so the best thing to do is take out life insurance on someone. Manda says that Cynthia confessed to gunning Toby down outside of his car on April 14, 1998.

She bragged like it was nothing, like baking a cake or winning $20 on the lottery. She thought she was going to get that life insurance policy on Toby and her and Rick were going to split. And then Rick would have probably been the next victim later down the road. I don't even know how much evil can live in one tiny little body.

She's a very dangerous individual. Once you resort to murder, then there's nothing you wouldn't do to get what you want. After Manda passes a polygraph test, prosecutors finally have the evidence they need to charge Cynthia with first degree murder in Texas on July 22nd, 1999.

It's some relief, because at least you can tell the family, then it's a little bit of closure for the family. In October 2000, Cynthia's trial in Corsicana begins. Faced with testimony from Rick and Manda, Cynthia's lawyer's strategy is to attack Rick's credibility. They questioned Rick extensively on his... It's one of the main things I remember from the trial is they really lit into him about his changing story.

I testified in court telling everything that I knew about Cindy and her looking at me just shaking her head and looking at me with dead black eyes like she was gonna get me. to interrupts the proceedings. Right before the jury was to come back in and say, guilty or not guilty, they made a plea bargain. 60 years, and then it was over. She applied guilty. Cindy looked really worn down. She looked kind of withered, really sad.

She just didn't know what else to do. The most lasting memory for me would probably be the day that I hauled her off to the Department of Corrections because I figured she got it what she deserved. Today, Cynthia Phillips is housed in an all-women facility in Texas. Despite her plea deal 20 years earlier, she maintains her innocence.

It never happened. Never happened. They tried to take everything and make it what they wanted to make it. They made a big mess. They put two people in prison. They didn't do this. The real monster's out there.

It's never been a secret that I've had an alter by man all my life. I loved mom. If I'm guilty of anything, I just love the first degree. And all those that have said bad things against me in life, I forgave them a long time ago because I'm not going to sit in here and hate on people. I believe justice one day will be served. I believe justice one day will be served.

But if you ask others, they'll tell you Cynthia is exactly where she needs to be. She's evil. She's probably the evilest person I've ever seen in my law enforcement career. Whenever the fly in the net is dead, she just flicks it out and goes on to the next with no remorse, no feeling. In addition to her murder charge, Cynthia was also found guilty of soliciting the murder of Ron Phillips and was sentenced to 24 years in prison. Due to this additional conviction,

she will not be eligible for parole until 2045. Rick Boyd pleaded guilty and received a 60-year sentence. He will be eligible for parole in 2028. Les Conrad's murder remains unsolved. For more information on SNAPT go to Oxygen.com. on a new adventure every week, fish dreams of creating his very own polite and quiet podcast. That is until he gets a surprise visit to his Fishbowl podcast studio from the cat in the hat himself, and it becomes very clear that the cat has other plans for the podcast.

And those plans are the opposite of quiet. Sing along to new favorite songs, try your luck at Titanic tongue twisters, have some fun with wondrous wordplay, and most importantly, bring your family along for all of the adventures in the Cat in the Hat Cast. Follow the Cat in the Hat Cast on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to the Cat in the Hat Cast early and ad-free on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts today.