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A millionairess is stalked and murdered by a hit man claiming to be a magazine writer.  Jeanne Tovrea  She was found dead in her bed CASE DETAILS  Why did the killer set off the alarm? Jeannie Gunter was born in Arkansas and got married right out of high school. She eventually divorced and wound up in Phoenix, working as a cocktail waitress. But she had higher ambitions than that. Jeannie got her real estate license and was immediately successful. According to Jeanne’s sister, Sandra Elder, that’s when she met Edward Tovrea, a charming, wealthy divorcee:
Less than a year after they met, Jeannie and Ed were married. According to society columnist Danny Medina, Jeannie was warmly accepted into the Phoenix upper crust:
Then, ten years after getting married, Ed’s health began to decline. Sandra Elder said that
When Ed eventually died, he left Jeannie an estate worth millions, including the house and a valuable art collection. After a period of mourning, according to columnist Medina, Jeannie re-entered the Phoenix social world:
 Jeanne was harassed with messages On April 1st, 1988, Jeannie prepared invitations for a high society party she planned to host. At 7 PM, she spoke with her sister. By 1AM the next day she was dead. She had been shot in the head five times. At the murder scene, police found several fingerprints, but no other physical evidence. According to Phoenix Police Detective Ernie Hamrick, Jeannie’s purse, identification, and credit cards were all missing:
Det. Hamrick said that he was sure the killer was familiar with Jeannie’s neighborhood because he entered her home so easily:
Police believe that the killer scattered Jeannie’s costume jewelry to make it look like a burglary. Thousands of dollars worth of real jewelry was left untouched in the next room. Det. Hamrick said he suspected the killer wanted someone to know he had been there:
Who wanted Jeannie Tovrea dead? Police had no idea. That is, until they listened to the tapes from her answering machine. One message began “Yes, Jeannie, this is Gordon Phillips. And I have some information for you.” Phillips claimed to be a freelance magazine writer working for Time Life. He had met with Jeannie, saying that he wanted to interview her about her late husband’s POW experiences. According to Sandra Elder:
Gordon Phillips would not give up. If Jeannie didn’t answer his calls, he left messages on her machine. Sandra said Jeannie was sure he was following her:
Police concluded that the name Gordon Philips was an alias adopted by a contract killer trying to get Jeannie alone. Update After a seven-year investigation, the man who called himself Gordon Phillips was identified. His real name is James Cornell Harrod and his fingerprints matched those found at the crime scene. Harrod was found guilty of first-degree murder. Because it was a contract killing, he was sentenced to death. However, the person who hired him to murder Jeannie is still a mystery. Watch this case now on Amazon Prime in season four with Robert Stack and in season three with Dennis Farina. Also available on YouTube with Dennis Farina. Various seasons available now on Hulu. SUBMIT A TIP |
June Harrod
You need to contact me if you want the most accurate information on this case.
I have the police files all 432 binders full of police information… Crime scene photos… And my brother James Harrod was the one accused of a crime he did not commit.
Reach out to me at weirdstuffdesigners@gmail.com… I will be more than happy to answer. Any question you have.
And by that I mean, I’ll be more than happy to dig out the police note to show you what they found, so you can judge for yourself.
My brother gained nothing from this… He was a real estate agent and a mortgage broker… His fingerprints were on file at the time of the crime… If they wanted him, they would’ve found him.
As as far as Hap… a nickname for happy… He was in real estate as well… Thus the connection.
My brother was in prison on death row for 24 years for a crime. He did not commit… It was brutal… His family suffered tremendously, yet the people that did the crime are still out there.
And keep in mind he never got a dime from anybody for anything… And Mr. Tovrea’s children did not inherit anything from a lifelong family fortune… Only genies daughter received everything!! Think about that. If they say it’s for the money and follow the money then do it!
Why would anybody sit behind block wall and be in total isolation for that long?? If he knew anything he would’ve told… But when you don’t know, you can’t say anything.
It would be very interesting to do an interview with her daughter who was estranged from her… Very interesting fact as well she had just cut her out of her will… The prior month! But the will did not go into effect so she took the money and ran!
And for those of you who think that Jeannie was a sweet lady… You have a right to your opinion… But if you read the police report from other people they did not get the same information from people who were in her life and knew her husband, and knew the situation.
You can’t judge without facts. And since you weren’t there, unless you were the actual killer… Then all you were doing is speculating.
Anonymous
I’ll admit, it may not be a great source but this article does ask many questions that aren’t answered if Hap and Harrod are guilty of this crime. For starters the person that committed this crime had to climb down a very steep mountain, If it was Harrod like the prosecution later claimed after they only accused him of being the middle man of the hit, he would have been a 250lb man who chained smoked and has had a life long leg disability going down a steep enough mountain the police originally predicted could have only been a person very much so in shape. Another hole is Harrods finger prints were conveniently conveniently only found at the point of entry not on any of the items that were staged to make it look like robbery or anywhere else, it sounds like they think he decided not to wear gloves when cutting the hole in the kitchen window and then decided to put them on. I’ll admit this one may not be true because it’s hard to find a lot of information on this case but apparently the Hap and his sisters that were the step children of Jeanne didn’t realize they even had a trust inherited to them from Jeanne until after she died. When Ed sr. Died they were given money and told that was all they were getting from his estate. I’m not saying he definitively didn’t do it but it very much so sounds like there’s a lot of questions still up in the air about this case and it was super interesting to look into, found this link that went over it really well https://janabommersbach.com/is-the-wrong-man-on-death-row-for-the-murder-of-an-heiress/
Ludry Ebarb
Back in the late 80,s, a friend of mine parents lived behind the hill,of Ms tovery, s home, high up. They believe that person or persons involved got away, over the hill, because there was a dirt road at the bottom and drove away maybe, not sure. They were a little scared at that thought
thinkingoutloud
interesting case, that Jeanne was murdered sometime after he husband died. Of course the first assumption is because she got the wealth and house and everything. So a hit-man was hired to kill her, HOWEVER it also depends on where her wealth and house and everything she owned went to. Her kids? Ed’s kids? Is Jeanne truly did not have an enemy in the world, I am sure her side of the family or Ed’s side of the family had something to do with it. Her wealth can only go those mentioned in her will. Maybe Ed’s children/family hired the hit-man. Just wouldn’t make sense as they wouldn’t gain anything from it since her daughter got everything.
R.W.
MUST READ!
http://www.tovreahomepage.com/murderp3.html
Jeff
So why has this guy on death row not snitched out ? That’s the big question. Did someone else close to him get the money or are they under threat , or is he innocent ?
mary salazar
All is not as it seems. Follow the money…..Jeannes’ daughter, Deborah Nolan got ALL the money. The Tovrea children gained nothing from her death. Diverting people’s attention away from the “actual” killer who confessed in 1989 to this crime won’t change the real facts.
Tammy Thomas
Who is Hap?
dick leroy
Everyone paying attention knows Hap is responsible. Period…
Truth seeker
You obviously know nothing about the case… Nothing about the family… And nothing about the crime.
Just ask me… My brother sat on death row for 23 years for a crime he did not commit… He received no money… He received a death sentence because he was a convenient scapegoat to close this crime case out as it was a cold case, and the detective did not care that he had the wrong person…
Please read be more informed… If half were involved at all, he would’ve been in that courtroom… They would’ve charged him with a crime.
With the name like happy… Do you really think he had a ax to grind with somebody? No, he did not… Even though his family got nothing… Yet her daughter got everything and they did not even have a relationship.
You have a question just ask me… I have all the police notes and reports in crime scene photos.
June Harrod
Leroy… Were you one of the cold case detectives on this case?
Were you the killer? You do not know of what you speak… Until you have the actual facts… Do not make accusations that are unfounded.
You may reach out to me… I am James Harrod‘s sister… And I have all the police notes and the crime scene photos… And I lived through all of this.
Follow the money… Jeannie‘s daughter got it all!! Yet she did not have a relationship with her daughter they were estranged from each other… And her daughter well she’s living the nice life on the Tovrea’s family Fortune.
Tammy Thomas
The ex-wife or a step-child?