Threats And Meetings In Billings Murder Plot

Florida Murder UPDATED Hugh Wiggins husband of Pamela Long Wiggins is named a person of interest in the calculated murders of a Florida panhandle couple.

by Jessica Taloney

Published: Tue, August 18, 2009 - 11:12 am CST Last Updated: Tue, August 18, 2009 - 3:23 pm CST

4:15 pm
Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan confirms Hugh Wiggins, husband of Pamela Long Wiggins, is a person of interest in the Billings murder.

Pamela Wiggins, who investigators say helped hide a safe stolen during the home invasion and double murder, is charged as an accessory after the crime.

12:15 pmA friend of alleged mastermind Leonard "Pat" Gonzalez, Jr. told investigators he knew his buddy was up to no good.

In an interview with Escambia County sheriff's deputies on July 24, Lonnie Smith, 32, said three weeks before Byrd and Melanie Billings were shot and killed in their Beulah, Florida home he witnessed a meeting between Gonzalez, Jr., Gary Sumner and Hugh Wiggins.

Smith, who said the meeting took place in a condo in Gulf Breeze, told investigators Gonzalez, Jr. asked him to go along on a "security job." Smith denied knowing many details of what he believed was a robbery, but said Gonzalez Jr. told him "this guys got a safe over there," to which he replied "no, dude, I'm not riding with nobody, I ain't kidnapping nobody, I ain't driving no damn get-away vehicle."

Smith said in the weeks leading up to the murders, Gonzalez Jr. repeatedly asked him to get involved, even calling him thirteen times the day the Billings' were killed.

"I was like dude, I don't know what the hell you keep calling me for, you're not gonna get me to, to do this thing," said Smith. When asked how much money Gonzalez Jr. thought was in the safe, he said "a couple million dollars."

In the 97 pages of the interview released Monday by the State Attorney's office, Smith said Gonzalez, Jr. introduced him to a man with a pony tail several times. According to investigators, Smith identified the man in a photo line up as Hugh Wiggins, who is not charged in the case. Wiggins' wife, Pamela, is charged as 'an accessory after the crime' after investigators found a safe stolen from the Billings' home buried in the backyard of her Gulf Breeze home.

Smith says after the meeting at the condo, Hugh Wiggins threatened him saying "if I got wind that you said anything, you know me....you'd go on a vacation you'd never come back from."

During the interview with investigators, Smith also mentioned a man named Henry "Cab" Tice, who has been named a person of interest in the case. Smith told investigators he has never met Tice, but said Gonzalez, Jr. and Tice "run when it comes to doing dirt." He said he has heard stories of Gonzalez Jr., and Tice going to Costa Rica "and getting escorted out with AK-47's."

Smith reluctantly discussed Tice with investigators saying on July 23, the day before the interviewed, he was warned about testifying against Tice. Smith says a friend, Chris Jones, told him "even if he does get locked up, you'd probably have to look over your shoulder for a while." Smith told investigators many men in the Pensacola car business believe Tice killed someone in Alabama ten years ago, though according to court records, he was never charged in Alabama with murder.

Byrd and Melanie Billings, who were well known in the Florida panhandle for adopting special needs children, were killed July 9. Melanie Billings was shot five times, including three times to her head and face. Byrd Billings was shot six times, including twice in the back of his head.

Nine of the children were in the house during the home invasion, and at least one of the couple's children witnessed the murders. The child, who is autistic, said his dad was asleep in the bedroom when two men knocked on the door. He said his dad then went into the hallway and the men screamed at him saying "you're going to die." He also described a struggle saying "dad grabbed the back of one of the guy's necks."

Leonard "Pat" Gonzalez Jr., 35, Leonard Gonzalez Sr., 56, Gary Sumner, 30, Wayne Coldiron, 41, Florence Rakeem, 16, Fredrick Thornton, 19 and Donnie Ray Stallworth, Jr., 28 are charged with two counts of capital murder and one count of home invasion robbery.

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ttt Says:

Wed, Aug 19, 2009 at 1:50 pm

To the person who thought the mafia was long gone… what planet are you on? To everyone else, these kinds of people exist everywhere. It is foolish of us to imagine that we can live in our posh homes and live our posh life style and not be affected by the grunge of the earth. We shouldn’t live with our heads under the ground. Mr. Gonzalez was a friend of a couple of other people who wanted the Billings out of the picture. He recruited a few other “friends” on the other side and offered to share the take. They all thought their life would be better and what a wonderful world it would be. They just did not gamble that there really wouldn’t be all that money. And they didn’t gamble on that security system not being disabled. A few have rolled on each other seeking imunity and unless there is some hard, concrete evidence, they will keep thier imunity. I find it comical that Mr. Gonzales swears he wasn’t there and didn’t pull the trigger. I would venture this will fall at the feet of Mr. Tice and his “friends”. These people are much more connected to one another than we have access to read about.

BamaBob Says:

Wed, Aug 19, 2009 at 7:15 am

It does sound like some type of network of criminals have taken over the place. Car lots that openly cater to illegal immigrants. Cops that occasionally round up those immigrants (probably shake them down and take their cars). Plus a bunch of brain dead jerks that think they are Ocean’s 11 or something.

Makes me scared just to go get lotto tickets!

claycitymadness Says:

Wed, Aug 19, 2009 at 6:36 am

bob this makes me think twice about even going to pensacola or gulf shores. we ought to put up a border crossing at the flora bama and keep em out. uggh, low life criminals. shoot em up. too bad the billings’s werent armed and responded appropriatly.

dementfsu Says:

Wed, Aug 19, 2009 at 6:33 am

...this safe thing…it not a safe thing,,,,,!!..only u keep your miuth shut..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...lol

BamaBob Says:

Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 3:07 pm

Hugh Wiggins must have cut a pretty good deal for turning his wife and the others in, because this story makes him sound very involved.

BamaBob Says:

Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 2:30 pm

Well, I think half of Pensacola is going to end up in jail before this thing is over.

Krickkett Says:

Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 2:25 pm

It’s really not odd to keep money in a home safe… regardless of the amount…that is what they are designed for.

What I want to know is how did ANY ONE OF these low life scumbags know that the Billings had 2 million dollars in that safe?

Not only did they know they had a safe…they even named a dollar amount?

Someone way too close to this family is involved in this one…...and we all will be really surprised at who it is going to turn out to be.

I already have my suspicions but I will not reveal it in a public forum

BamaBob Says:

Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 2:19 pm

That Tice guy said the word all over Pensacola was that Billings kept a large amount of cash at that house. He apparently liked doing everything with cash.