Texas auto dealer executive hired hitmen to kill mistress and blackmailer, feds say
A Texas auto dealer executive is accused of paying more than $750,000 to two ex-Marines and a purported former Israeli soldier to kidnap and kill his former mistress and her boyfriend, federal prosecutors said Monday. Holly Williams, 33, and William Lanway, 36, were killed in Nashville, Tennessee on March 12, 2020.
A federal indictment unsealed Monday charges four people with multiple charges including kidnapping resulting in death — Erik Charles Maund, 46, of Austin, a partner in Maund Automotive Group; Gilad Peled, 47, of Austin; Bryon Brockway, 46, of Austin; and Adam Carey, 30, of Richlands, North Carolina.
According to court documents, Peled claims he is a former member of the Israeli Defense Forces and was the owner of Speartip Security in Austin. Brockway and Carey were both identified as former active duty U.S. Marines.
According to the indictment, in early February 2020, Maund, who is married, contacted Holly Williams, with whom he previously had an extramarital relationship, to try and set up a meeting with her during an upcoming visit to Nashville.
After his visit to Nashville, Maund received a series of text messages from William Lanway, who was Williams' boyfriend. Lanway demanded money from Maund and "threatened to expose his relationship" with Williams if his extortion demands were not met, the documents say.
Maund then allegedly enlisted the services of Peled, Brockway and Carey. Maund withdrew $15,000 from his bank account on the same day that an "intelligence report" was prepared and provided to Peled, prosecutors say.
Carey traveled to Nashville to spy on Williams and Lanway, authorities allege. On March 9, 2020, Peled received a document entitled "Tennessee Sitrep," which said Carey had confirmed Williams' address and vehicle and that Lanway had been staying with her, prosecutors say.
Police say on March 11, 2020, Brockway and Carey confronted Williams and Lanway in the parking lot of Williams' apartment complex in Nashville and shot Lanway multiple times, killing him. They then kidnapped Williams and drove her and Lanway's body to a construction site, where they fatally shot Williams.
"The bodies were then discarded at the construction site and within hours of the murders, the Pinger account used to communicate was deleted and a rental car rented by Brockway was returned," prosecutors said.
The indictment alleges that since March 11, 2020, Maund wired more than $750,000 from his bank account to an account controlled by Peled, as payment to Peled, Brockway, and Carey.
Last week all four were arrested. Maund was arrested after a traffic stop near Austin, Peled was arrested at Austin's airport, Brockway was arrested in San Diego, and Carey was arrested at his home in North Carolina.
If convicted, all four men face up to life in prison.
"This investigation began with the discovery of two bodies inside a vehicle on Good Friday 2020," said Nashville Police Chief John Drake. "Realizing this very complex case reached far outside of Nashville, our team enlisted the help of the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office. Our close relationship with our federal partners led to the indictment and arrest of the four individuals."