Pamela Phillips was cautious when she first began paying Ronald Young, going so far as to withdraw funds from multiple banks. But she got sloppy over the years, a forensic accountant testified Wednesday.
Robert Semple, a certified public accountant, spent several hours on the stand Wednesday testifying in Young's first-degree murder trial.
Young, 67, is charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the November 1996 pipe-bomb killing of commercial real estate developer Gary Triano, 52.
Prosecutors intend to prove Phillips, Triano's former wife, hired Young to kill Triano for $400,000 - one-fifth of the $2 million she received from Triano's life insurance policy, which defense attorney Walt Palser contends was blackmail money.
Semple testified that he examined Young's and Phillips' financial records, and then used thousands of documents obtained from Young's computer and Zip disks to "fill in the holes." Among the documents were amortization schedules created by Young showing that Phillips had taken out a $400,000 "loan" and was paying him back with 4 percent interest, Semple said.
People are also reading…
Phillips took different steps to cover the fact that she was sending Young large sums of money multiple times a month, Semple said.
For example, Phillips often withdrew small amounts of money from various banks, compiled it, bought a single money order from a convenience store and then shipped it to Young by Federal Express, Semple said. Other times, Phillips would write multiple checks to herself and cash them before buying the money order.
The checks in 1996 and 1997 ranged from $2,000 to $8,800.
His investigation revealed that Phillips actually started paying Young five months before Triano's death, Semple said.
In the early years, Semple said, Young also was cautious. He would ask Phillips to send him 14 items, and bank records dated a few days later would show a deposit of $1,400, Semple said.
Several years into the arrangement between the two, Semple said, he was struck by a single transaction. Phillips withdrew $9,500 at one time, and $9,500 landed in Young's account a couple of days later.
It was only after reading e-mail exchanges that he realized what happened, Semple said.
Young demanded $13,000 from Phillips, saying he needed it for surgery in Mexico, Semple said.
"She got sloppy. She made a mistake," Semple said of Phillips.
The last payment made to Young was for $1,000 in July 2004, Semple said.
Young and Phillips were indicted in Triano's death in October 2008, and Young was arrested immediately in California. Phillips was arrested in Austria in December 2009 and is awaiting extradition.
Contact reporter Kim Smith at 573-4241 or kimsmith@azstarnet.com
