Snapped: Women Who Murder - Mary Ann Bragg

Episode Date: May 12, 2024

After a Georgia father is discovered bludgeoned by a hammer in his own bedroom, it takes years for detectives to nail down if this murder is connected to a series of online romances or a case of mistaken identity.Season 28 Episode 25Originally aired: March 14, 2021Watch 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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I can't have you all messing things up my entire adult life. Oh I'm sorry do we embarrass you? Dinner next Friday everyone? Wouldn't miss for the world. Dinner with the Parents season 1 stream free only on Freevy. I'm sorry, do we embarrass you? Dinner next Friday, everyone? Wouldn't miss her in the world. Dinner with the Parents, season one, stream free only on Freevy. A loving marriage is tested by a devastating accident. The roof collapsed, and my dad and his twin brother

broke their ankles and legs. And she was taking care of both of them. But when one of the brothers is brutally murdered, the question becomes, was their accident actually intentional? The blood spatter was extensive. Behind the door, on the walls, on the ceiling. I observed the pillow over the face. Somebody knows the victim.

They don't want to see what they've done. He had enemies around town, and he may have had people angry at him to come and seek him out. Georgia detectives must sift through a series of lies to expose the cold-blooded truce. We uncovered a lot of illicit affairs, one of which was with a local pastor. We found all of these cyber affairs,

talking up sexual fantasies and these wants and these desires. We just got to the point, and we felt like this is never going to be solved. He changed his story and actually admitted that he had a moment of weakness. Evil is among us. Evil is everywhere. There's no other word to describe her other than evil. and police officer Drew Jackson is out on patrol. I was a brand new rookie police officer at the time,

so I had only been on the street for about two months. I was a little bit worried about the police. I was worried about the police. I was worried about the police. I was worried about the police. I was worried about the police. I was worried about the police. I was worried about the police.

I was worried about the police. I was is out on patrol. I was a brand new rookie police officer at the time, so I had only been on the street for about two months. I was just patrolling the area when I received the call. Dispatch reports that a concerned resident has reported finding his neighbor dead inside his home. When I was dispatched to a dead body, my emotions were all over the place. dead inside his home. When I was dispatched to death body, my emotions were all over the place.

This was the first time I'd experienced anything like this. As Officer Jackson pulls up to the house, he finds the neighbor who placed the call. James Mann just told me that Tom Bragg was his neighbor. James was just in the front yard, just visibly shaken. And you could tell he had witnessed something that was horrific. When I go in the house, there was nothing that stood out.

It didn't look like it was in any disarray. The house was actually was fairly clean. There were blood drops going through the entryway and into the dining room. And all to the left of the dining room was the bedroom. I turned left. I made it to the doorway of the spare bedroom, and I didn't enter any further.

I observed the body laying on the bed with a pillow over the face. I could see the large pool of coagulated blood under the bed, the massive amounts of blood and tissue that were on the walls and on the ceiling. I could tell there was no need for me to go any further. I couldn't help Tom. He was clearly deceased.

MUSIC Tom Bragg was born on July 27, 1956, alongside his identical twin brother, Tim, and their four older siblings. Tom was born first, and then Tim was born three minutes after Tom. And they have this funny saying was, Tim kicked Tom out. They looked identical, but they acted totally different.

My dad was the real meek, reserved one, and my Uncle Tim was the wild, crazy one. After high school, Tom started working as a long-haul trucker. He liked the job, but not the solitude. Luckily, he was able to find someone to keep him company when he wasn't on the road. My mom and dad, I met at a local huddle house. My mom was a waitress. Tom and Frederica fell hard for one another

and quickly got married. Together, they had a son and a daughter. During the summers, my dad would take me and my brother with him across country During the summers, my dad would take me and my brother with him across country in the truck. And we got to see lots of places. Tom made a good living, but the lifestyle was hard on his marriage.

My mother and mother divorced when I was 13. So my dad moved back to Thomason, where his mom resided. So my dad moved back to Thomaston, where his mom resided. By the mid-'90s, Tom was at peace with the divorce, but he didn't want to be single forever. While out one night with his brother, a blonde bombshell caught Tom's eye.

My mom was a petite, blue-eyes, natural blonde hair. She was always good-spirited, always trying to be funny. Mary Ann Nance was raised in Scotthown, Ohio, the youngest of five children she was accustomed to being well looked after. Mary Ann, she always had people taking care of her. Her parents took care of her. Her brothers and sister took care of her. But Mary Ann was quickly forced to hone her own mothering skills as a teenager when she and her high school

sweetheart, John Viers, found out she was pregnant. She got pregnant by my biological father when she was young. My grandparents were very strict. When you got pregnant, you biological father when she was young. My grandparents were very strict. When you got pregnant, you had to get married. So they got married. Mary Ann and John had three daughters together. For seven years, Mary Ann struggled to hold

her young family together. Her husband was very strict with the children, so eventually they divorced. My mother worked at the mill at one point, and she also worked at a gas station. She did whatever she had to do to be able to take care of her three girls. I think that my mother was unlucky in love,

because she always looked for someone that she could try to fix. Five years after her divorce, 32-year-old Maryann's fortunes turned when she married James Wright. He was an older man, and he made sure the bills got paid. He took care of her children.

I looked at James as my father. He's my dad. There was nothing wrong with him. There was nothing that she needed to fix. And she realized that being with him, that she was the one that was broken, that she had things that needed to be fixed. She was seeing a psychiatrist on and off for a while.

She has a nervous condition. She would often get nervous. She'd black out. Sadly, after nearly 10 years of marriage, Mary Ann and James decided to split. But their bond endured. They divorced, but they continued to keep their friendship. They continue to

raise their children together. That communication and that friendship that they made never stopped. Even though she had been through plenty of changes, one thing remained the same. Maryanne Maryann wanted to find true love. She's a woman that loves being in love. She is a happy, vibrant person. She is a caring person. After her and James split up, she had met this lady named Bonnie at the VFW, and Bonnie was dating Tim Bragg at the time. And through Tim and Bonnie, she met Tom, who was Tim's twin.

Tom and Mary Ann immediately hit it off. When my mother and Tom Bragg got together, she was happy. Tom was a funny person. He was sweet. The first time I met her, she was extremely nice and very sweet to me. She came on awfully strong to win our approval. After a few years together, in August 2001, Mary Ann and Tom decided to tie the knot, and Tom quit his job as a truck driver.

Tom started going into construction so he could spend more time at home with Mary Ann. My dad had his own roofing business. My Uncle Tim, he would help my dad finish up jobs so that they could spend time together while he was at home. Nearly a year after his marriage to Mary Ann, Tom and his brother were hard at work completing a job at the New Life Pentecostal

Church when misfortune struck. The roof collapsed, and they all fell through the roof and broke their ankles and legs. My uncle, Tom, moved in with my dad during the time of their treatment. And he was staying there, and Mary Ann my dad during the time of their treatment, and he was staying there and Mary Ann was taking care of both of them. They're both in a wheelchair.

My aunt kind of ran back and forth, delivering coffee or snacks or sandwiches or medicine, whatever he needed. She was basically his caretaker. Their recovery went well, and by September, Tim had moved out and Tom was looking forward to getting his health back. He used a cane and sometimes his wheelchair, but he was on the mend and he was extremely happy about it. However, Tom's road to recovery was suddenly cut short on September 9 when Thomaston police find his lifeless body

inside his home. He was on his back, face up, arms down by his side, and it reminded me of somebody laying in a casket. It was creepy. It was almost like he'd been taken care of after his death. Coming up, detectives shift their focus It was creepy. It was almost like he'd been taken care of after his death. Coming up, detectives shift their focus to Tom's inner circle.

The first obvious question is, where's the wife? And investigators consider a terrifying theory. Maybe they didn't mean to kill Tom, and they mistakenly got the brothers mixed up. MUSIC MUSIC On September 9, 2002, 46-year-old roofer Tom Bragg is found brutally murdered inside his Thomaston, Georgia home.

After securing the crime scene, local police immediately summoned the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for assistance. The GVI has a plethora of equipment, manpower, things at their disposal that the Thomasin Police Department didn't, and most departments don't. Upon arrival, I was shown the scene.

There's a white male laying there, apparently deceased, with a pillow laying over his head. When investigators lift the pillow, they make a gruesome discovery. There were multiple injuries to the side of Tom Bragg's head, but the largest one was all the way through the skull. The crime scene evidence was indicative of a blunt force trauma to the head.

The object would have been consistent with a claw hammer. The blood spatter that was around that room was extensive, behind the door, on the walls, on the ceiling. and he was hit by a saw hammer. The blood spatter that was around that room was extensive, behind the door, on the walls, the ceiling. Investigators note that Tom's leg is in a cast, a fact that would have made it difficult to defend himself. But they don't believe Tom even had a chance to react. At first glance, you think he's laying there.

He's asleep. That's the position he's in. That was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there.

He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there.

He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying there. He was lying in that bed for several hours before he was found because the blood had coagulated. He didn't have nothing taken, nothing rummaged through. You had no indication of anything

other than this was a deliberate killing of Tom Bragg for no other reason than to eliminate his existence. I think any experienced investigator would have came up with that assessment just from viewing the body. They were close to this person. They took the moment to cover the person's face with the pillow.

That's usually a sign of crime of passion. Somebody knows the victim. They don't want to see what they've done. Investigators step outside to speak with the neighbors who He was supposed to take Tom to the parts store to pick up a part for his truck that morning. And Tom had never showed up at his house. So that's why he had come over to check on Tom. People were very upset. They were very upset.

They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset.

They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. They were very upset. his truck that morning, and Tom had never showed up at his house. So that's why he had come over to check on Tom. He found the door open, called out for Tom Bragg. He entered the house, made his way to the spare bedroom where he found Tom Bragg laying face up in the bed with the pillow over her face. The first obvious question is, where's the wife? I spoke to James Mann's wife, Lee Henry. And that's when I first heard about Mary Ann, Tom Bragg's wife.

Lee Henry told me that she had already called Mary Ann and told her that she needed to get home, that there was a problem. James and Lee explained that they were sitting on their porch drinking their morning coffee when they saw Mary Ann leave the house around 6 AM. Mary Ann told them she had a doctor's appointment that she was going to. There was nothing unordinary. They said she acted normal.

She wasn't in a hurry or disheveled, or seemed upset. After Mary Ann departed, James and Lee saw an indication that Tom was still alive. After Mary Ann had left that morning, they saw the red glow of a cigarette on the front porch of Tom and Mary Ann's residence. It wasn't unheard of that she was going to the red glow of a cigarette on the front porch of Tom and Mary Ann's residence. It wasn't unheard of for Tom to get up very early

in the morning, have a cigarette, a cup of coffee, and then go back to bed. He was known to do that. As investigators wrap up their interview with James and his wife, Mary Ann arrives on the scene. Mary Ann's truck pulls up right in front of my car. Her and her friend, Deborah Clay, get out of the car. Detectives carefully deliver the tragic news about her husband. I see her get weak-kneed.

Mary Ann went into like panic mode. She almost collapsed there on the side of the road. about her husband. I see her get weak kneed. Mary Ann went into like panic mode. She almost collapsed there on the side of the road. Once Mary Ann is able to gather herself, she confirms that she headed out early for an appointment with her psychiatrist in the city of LaGrange. The morning of the death, when Mary Ann left the house, she went to pick Deborah Clay up at around 7 in the morning

because they had to be in LaGrange for the appointment at 8, and it's about an hour's drive. Although Deborah confirms Maryann's alibi, investigators still scan Maryann for signs of blood. Once you looked at the crime scene and you really just saw how gruesome it was, you know the person that did that had to be covered in blood and tissue.

I mean, there's no way for that not to have happened. They also asked to take a look at her truck. I looked in the cab and I looked in the back to see if I noticed any blood, anything of that nature, and I didn't see anything. Investigators ask Maryann if she can think of anyone who would commit such a gruesome crime. Tom didn't have any enemies. Everybody liked Tom. Even if Tom owed him money, people still liked him.

One of the things that Maryann indicated was, well, Tim bragged Tom's blood was on the truck. And he said, well, Tim bragged Tom's twin brother had enemies around town, and he may have had people angry at him to come and seek him out. And according to her, Tim had been staying in the house for a little bit of the time after the accident, and he back there in that bedroom due to the fact he was in pain. He didn't want Mary Ann bumping his leg while he slept that night.

Mary Ann's statement has investigators considering a disturbing possibility. They were twins. It would be easy to mistake Tom for Tim, especially being that he was a little bit more aggressive. He was a little bit more aggressive. He was a little bit more aggressive. as investigators considering a disturbing possibility. They were twins. It would be easy to mistake Tom for Tim, especially being that he was in the wrong room.

Maybe they didn't mean to kill Tom. Maybe they meant to kill Tim. And they mistakenly got the brothers mixed up. Investigators waste little time contacting Tim Bragg, who agrees to meet for an interview at the Thomaston Police Department. Tim admits that he likes to have a good time, but insists he's not in the habit of making enemies.

We didn't find any indication that he was this hellraiser going around town, getting in fights, causing trouble. We didn't see anything to indicate that he was that type of person at all. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man.

He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man.

He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real man. He was a real that may have been a blood spot. Tim vehemently denies any involvement in his brother's murder. He showed up to the police department with Bonnie Powell, who confirmed his story that he was home with her at the time of occurrence

and had been home since the previous night. The blood spot did raise some suspicions, but there's 1,000 reasons why, if you've had a cast on as long as this man has, that you would have a spot of blood on it. It was never determined that Tim had any involvement in Tom's death. They were very close,

and there was just never any evidence that pointed towards Tim. Tim reveals to detectives that he has his own theory about who killed his brother, and he believes this wasn't their first attempt. He felt that investigators should know this, because to him, the matter of what happened with Tom at the roofing job was very suspicious.

Coming up, a new suspect emerges with strange ties to the accident that left Tom in a wheelchair. Could it have been the actual killer standing there? And salacious rumors give way to an outrageous truth. Her and the pastor became romantic. She's straight up playing the Damsel in Distress card. It was like a bad soap opera. Hey, listeners, it's Will Arnett.

Our podcast, Smartless, has crossed a milestone that seemed unfathomable when we started nearly four years ago as we've just released our 200th episode. Join us as we welcome the dynamic duo of hilarity, Steve Martin and Martin Short. You've seen them on screen together in The Three Amigos, Father of the Bride 1 and 2, and most recently,

and Only Murders in the Building. Both are comedic geniuses in their own right, but together they are always electric. And this episode of Smartless is no exception. I don't know if I've laughed more in a single episode than this one. We discussed their career arcs both separately and as a comedy team, how they met, who is more difficult to work with, and what motivates them today. Is Steve a better banjo player than Marty is a singer? Find out on this bi-centennial

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And we just love swapping stories about all of the morbid things that fascinate us. And if you do too, join us on our podcast, Morbid. It's a safe space to let your weirdo flag fly. On Morbid, we cover dark historical events, sinister science, unnerving paranormal events, and sordid high society murders. We also dive deep into the most notorious crimes in history.

Our podcast is grounded in rigorous and painstaking research. We're also not afraid to read a f***ing text. We keep it weird because a dash of snark is necessary to get through grotesque true tales of demented minds. So follow Morbid on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Morbid early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. He says following the roofing accident in which they both broke their legs, Tom went back to the church to examine the roof and made a frightening discovery. Tom noticed that one of the bearing walls had been cut through with a saw.

He was already suspicious of James Wright, who was the ex-husband of Mary Ann Brack. of James Wright, who was the ex-husband of Mary Ann Brack. James Wright had been at the site where they were roofing. He had been seen there the day before. But no one knows why James Wright was there that day. Tom knew that James Wright did not like him. And of course, it was mutual between them. James Wright was also a concern of the families, as well as the deceased, Tom.

He was always in the perimeter, no matter what Mary Ann did. When investigators track down James Wright, he surprisingly admits that he still has feelings for his ex-wife. James Wright will do anything for Mary Ann. He could not say no to Mary Ann. James also admits that he and Tom had their issues, but denies having any hand in his deaths.

James Wright loved my mom unconditionally till the day he died. But there would be no reason for my dad, James Wright, to hurt Tom. James Wright took a polygraph, and he never backed down on his statements. There was no connections with him to the roofing accident. He passed the polygraph with no problems. He

wasn't there and he had an airtight alibi. With their most promising lead falling through, investigators reach out to Tom's friends and family who share a troubling rumor about Mary Ann. She was apparently having multiple affairs. Tom was worried that Mary Ann was running around on him. So that's why he wanted to stop his driving and start doing roofing and construction work. Among Mary Ann's rumored lovers, one name immediately grabs investigators' attention.

One of the people that she was allegedly having an affair with was the neighbor, Jimmy Mann, from across the street, the man who found the body. Friends and neighbors say there was a very public confrontation between the two men just weeks before Tom's death. There at the Walmart in Thomaston, Jimmy Mann and Tom Bragg had exchanged words.

When investigators consider this newfound information, they naturally become skeptical of James Mann's initial story. This man across the road is having an affair with your wife. Why would you want him coming in your house, to the police, and he was arrested. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime.

He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for a crime. He was arrested for's murder. Lee backs her husband's claims. One thing that was consistent all the way through was that her and Jimmy Mann were together all morning.

There was no chance or opportunity for him to sneak across the street and do these things. But there is one thing that's been a long, long time coming that's been a long, long time coming. And that is that he's been in a relationship with a woman named Mary Ann. And that is that he's been in a relationship with a man named Tom. consistent all the way through was that her and Jimmy Man were together all morning. There was no chance or opportunity for him to sneak across the street and do these things. But there is one vital detail that Lee and James

do waver on. The only inconsistency ever really found in anything they said was the cigarette glow. You know, oh, it was Tom glowing cigarette. Didn't it? Well, we didn't really see a face. Well, it could have been a tail light reflection in the window because it was just a brief flash. The uncertainty raises even more questions.

Could it have been the actual killer standing there? Or was it a tail light reflection? We don't know. From what Lee Henry and James Mann stated that Mary Ann would have left, it still could have mean Mary Ann had committed the crime and that someone else was still there after the murder. Without concrete evidence that Tom was alive

after she left the house, Mary Ann is back on the suspect was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man.

He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man.

He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. He was a young man. Police discover that Maryann had a hobby to keep her occupied. Maryann, at the time, had engaged in chat room activity on her computer. She seen the computer as a distraction,

as a way to talk to people, give her somebody to talk to. She had lots of guys who were interested in her online and as well as in town. Police obtain a search warrant for Maryann's property, including her computer, and what they uncover is shocking. We found all of these cyber affairs, talking up sexual fantasies and sexual favors and these wants and these desires.

As investigators scroll through the list of online suitors, they are surprised by one in particular. We uncovered a lot of illicit affairs that Mary Ann was involved in, one of which was with a local pastor here in Thomson by the name of Steve Craven. Tom and Tim had both fallen off a roof, and it was the church that Pastor Steve Craven. Tom and Tim had both fallen off a roof. And it was the church that Pastor Steve Craven

was the pastor over. It was a blow to me when I found out, because I let him do a eulogy at my dad's funeral. And I didn't know any of this. And I didn't know any of this. We interviewed Pastor Steve Craven. At first, he denied any involvement with any kind of illicit affair with Mary Ann Bragg. But investigators have proof to the contrary.

Once we confronted him with the emails and the photos, he changed his story and actually admitted that, yes, to the contrary. Once we confronted him with the emails and the photos, he changed his story and actually admitted that, yes, he had had a moment of weakness, as he called it. When Tom's accident happened with him out of work, Mary Ann, she had trouble making the bills. So she sought help from the pastor and the church to help with her bills.

During that time, her and the pastor became friends and got romantic. Despite the relationship with Mary Ann, investigators find no reason to believe Pastor Craven was involved in Tom's murder. Nor do they believe that he or anyone associated with the church caused the roof collapse. was involved in Tom's murder. Nor do they believe that he or anyone associated with the church caused the roof collapse.

His alibi was that he works at the Air Force Base almost two hours away from Thomaston and where the incident occurred. At this point, this was just another person in town that Mary Ann was flirtatious with, she was coming on to. She's straight up playing the damsel in distress card. It was like a bad soap opera. While the number of men that Mary Ann was involved with

continues to grow, investigators are far from proving she had anything to do with Tom's death. Yes, Mary Ann cheated on her husband, but that is not a crime. do with Tom's death. Yes, Mary Ann cheated on her husband, but that is not a crime. But soon, investigators get a tip that suggests Mary Ann may have been capable of far more than cheating.

On the tip line that the family had set up, a former son-in-law of Mary Ann Bragg submitted a tip. Several years prior, Mary Ann had asked him to get rid of James Wright. He believes that Mary Ann may be up to her old tricks and was trying to eliminate her husband. Coming up, a selfish motive rises to the surface. He can't work.

He can't bring in money. She's tired of waiting on him. And the investigation comes to a screeching halt. It was a living hell. It was a nightmare. Investigators looking into the death of 46-year-old Tom Bragg have learned that his wife, Mary Ann, was engaged in multiple affairs, both in person

and over the internet. During the time leading up to the murder of Tom Bragg, Tom is injured. He's not working. He's got two broke legs. Mary Ann's staying at home on the computer all day, talking to men in the surrounding areas. two broke legs. Mary Ann's standing home on the computer all day talking to men in the surrounding areas.

But a tip from Mary Ann's former son-in-law leads investigators to believe that she may have had more than just lust on her mind. We did discover that she had asked about having a previous husband taken care of or killed. He felt that investigators should know this, because to him, it looked like she was trying to do the exact same thing that she

had tried to do years before. To investigate the claim, detectives reach out to the long list of potential lovers gleaned from Mary Ann's computer. And one by one, they confirmed disturbing requests they received from her. How can I take care of him? How can he go away? How can he disappear? Basically, she was looking for someone

to kill him, to take him out. Although Mary Ann purportedly wanted her husband dead, it's unclear as to why. Until investigators delve into the case of the former suspect. Although Maryann purportedly wanted her husband dead, it's unclear as to why, until investigators delve into Tom and Maryann's financial records. In February of 2002, Maryann had taken out a life insurance policy on Tom Bragg

in the amount of $25,000. Our investigation showed that Tom Bragg was never even aware that this insurance policy existed. On October 25th, investigators ask Marianne down to the station for a third interview. When they confront her with evidence of her infidelity, she plays it cool.

When confronted with her Yahoo chats and things of that nature, that that was role play. Marianne tells detectives that her online affairs were just a way of coping with her growing unhappiness with Tom. She even made the statements to me in an interview that she is supposed to be the one being taken care of, not being a nursemaid to her crippled who can't work. Investigators believe Maryann just handed them another hint

as to why she may have wanted Tom out of her life. Leading up to Tom's death, that's kind of the mindset that she was in. I'm tired of washing clothes, feeding him, cooking for him, cleaning after him. And he can't work. He can't bring in money. This is not what I signed up for.

One of the witnesses said that my aunt had been looking for someone to kill her husband and that she had been offering to pay them money out of the insurance policy. I've never heard my aunt mention that. She's denying everything about the past, about trying to have her ex-husband killed, trying to have Tom killed. She never had those conversations

that the people are making that up. While police believe they've zeroed in on a motive, whether or not Mary Ann found someone to do her dirty work for her remains a mystery. Detectives continue to dig, but within months, the trail of evidence goes ice cold, and Tom's family grows frustrated. We would go to the police department every day, goes ice cold, and Tom's family grows frustrated.

We would go to the police department every day, and we would badger the police. And it was a living hell. It was a nightmare. And we just got to the point, and we felt like this is never going to be solved. Marianne also frequently called to the Thomasden Police Department,

but she wasn't looking for answers about who killed her husband. The only thing she would talk about is, why haven't I got my insurance money? Their investigator for the insurance company would call me and say, hey, can we release this money? Is she still a suspect? Absolutely. She's still a suspect. Okay, thank you very much.

They would not pay. And that would highly frustrate her. The police department and our office had suspected that Mary Ann was the perpetrator of this crime for quite some time. With the investigation at a standstill, detectives decide to retrace their steps. If you're a good trained investigator, and re-interview those people, and sometimes you can catch them up. They start with the cornerstone of Mary Ann's alibi,

her friend Deborah Clay, who rode with Mary Ann to the doctor's office on the morning of the murder. Deborah reveals that she was the victim of a murder. She was a victim of a murder. She was a victim of a murder. She was a victim of a murder. She was a victim, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very,

very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, slept most of the ride to LaGrange, which is about an hour ride. Deborah recalls emerging from her drug-induced slumber just long enough to witness something particularly odd.

Deborah Clay did tell us that she recalls once the vehicle stopped, and she remembers they were on a bridge and Mary Ann throwing an item in a plastic bag off the bridge. Deborah sleeps again. She awakes again at the Hardee's in Greenville. She remembers Mary Ann disposing a large trash bag into the dumpster there at the Hardee's.

And then they proceed the rest of the way to LaGrange to the doctor's appointment. Investigators believe that if the bags exist, they likely contain evidence Marianne was eager to get rid of. If Marianne had thrown a bag of clothing from the vehicle, we theorized that that was clothing that had blood on it, and possibly the murder weapon as well.

Deborah also recalls Maryann making an odd statement after her doctor's appointment. She wanted to know if she told her psychiatrist if it would be protected under doctor patient privilege. Investigators quickly put in a request with the psychiatrist's office for Mary Ann's records. We had to fight to get his records, and I think it was because what his records was going to do to her.

Coming up, a slip of the tongue breaks the case wide open. That proved that she knew it was the gotcha moment for me. Two years into their investigation, Georgia authorities desperately need a smoking gun to tie Mary Ann Bragg to the brutal murder of her husband, Tom. Investigators are now fighting for critical records from Mary Ann's psychiatrist. It pretty much comes down to a court order to get everything, and then it was still like pulling teeth to get these records.

In 2005, nearly three years after the murder of her husband, Tom was arrested for a murder of his own. And then it was still like pulling teeth to get these records. In 2005, nearly three years after the murder of Tom Bragg, investigators obtained the coveted medical records. On the morning of the murder, according to the doctor's note, Mary Ann Bragg appeared to be distraught and made the comment to the doctor's note, Mary Ann Bragg appeared to be distraught and made the comment to the doctor that she had just found out that her husband had been killed. The statement immediately raises red flags for investigators. She had not been notified by law enforcement at that point

that her husband had been murdered. What does that tell you? She knew he was dead because she had killed him been notified by law enforcement at that point that her husband had been murdered. What does that tell you? She knew he was dead because she had killed him before she left that morning. It was the gotcha moment for me. When those records came out and we get that information, and then you put that with everything else we've got,

we're good to go. and then you put that with everything else we've got, we're good to go. On November 8, 2005, investigators arrive at Mary Ann's home, where they finally placed the 49-year-old under arrest. Mary Ann Bragg was charged and indicted with the offenses of malice murder, felony murder, and aggravated assault.

The news of her arrest to my family was a relief. We could finally rest. I was just crying, just crying from just wonderful feelings that this was finally over. It was so much relief. In September 2006, Mary Ann's trial begins. Prosecutors allege that in the weeks leading up to the murder, Mary Ann was getting increasingly frustrated

with her new lifestyle. You go back to Investigations 101, ability, opportunity, motive, who checks those boxes? Let's go back to Investigations 101. Ability, opportunity, motive. Who checks those boxes? She married Tom because Tom was known to be a hardworking man who could provide for her and give her the life that she wanted. From the prosecution standpoint,

she was tired of Tom being disabled from his injury. She was tired of there being no income coming into the house. She was tired of having to take care of Tom, and she was looking for a way out. When you start putting the rumors together and you start figuring things out, you start seeing some consistencies here. She wants him bashed in the head, but she can't get nobody to do it, so she does it herself.

She betrayed and killed her husband. In the early morning hours, probably right before she left to go to her doctor's appointment, between 5.30 and 6 AM would have been when Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. and killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg.

And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg.

And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. And then Mary Ann killed Tom Bragg. to murder James Wright and Tom. They were very explicit about how she went about asking them to commit murder for her. But Mary Ann's defense team argues that the prosecution's case is purely circumstantial and far from airtight. Her defense attorneys argued that there was no direct evidence to tie her to this crime. She couldn't do nothing like that. I told her exactly what I thought,

that I knew she couldn't do nothing like that. After a week of testimony, the state rests its case, and the jury comes to a decision. The jury found Mary Ann Bragg guilty on all three counts, malice murder, felony murder, and aggravated assault. She was sentenced to life in prison on the malice murder count and also life in prison on the felony murder count. She was sentenced to 20 years to serve on the aggravated assault

count, which for all three maximum sentences provided by law. to 20 years to serve on the aggravated assault count, which were all three maximum sentences provided by law. To know that my mother got two life sentences in 20 years was devastating. She will die in prison, and that's heartbreaking. But myself, I will not quit praying that something will happen, and she will walk out

of there before that time. We didn't want the death penalty because that would have been too easy for Mary Ann. She needed to think about what she did to Tom every day. Evil is among us. Evil is everywhere. And when you look at people like Mary Ann Bragg, there's no other word to describe her other than evil. Per Georgia law, Mary Ann never received the life insurance money from Tom's death.

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