Wendy Adson
Appearances
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
And just in my opinion, I don't think that... in a situation like that, that I could leave cremains that low. But then again, everybody is different.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
I asked Miss Johanna where Diane's cremains were. I was just out of curiosity. And she then showed me a picture that Diane's cremains were still in the simple cardboard box in a drawer in what used to be her closet. You had this woman who, from everything I learned, had a passion for life. Jay referred to her as a koala bear or a cobra, that she was very passionate yet aggressive, knew her stuff.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
enjoyed life, travel, fur coats, designer things. And to have a woman of that stature, if you will, be in a simple cardboard box in the bottom of her closet after her husband sold all her things, it's a little unsettling to say the least.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
I had a mutual friend by the name of Mr. Jay Grover, who I worked with many years ago in the hospitality business. And that is how... Diane ended up with me.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
I got the call probably, I want to say about 10 o'clock on the 27th. And from a lady who lived or worked with Diane. And she called and stated that they had had a death in the family and we had a mutual friend. She didn't tell me that that was Mr. Grover at the time. And so we kind of went over a couple of pieces of information that I needed, the name of the person who had passed.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
And, of course, I never knew. I didn't know Diane. I knew of her. But she gave me the name Landa, Diane McIver, so I wasn't familiar. We started the paperwork exchange, if you will, the things that I needed. And then later on that morning is when I spoke to Mr. Jack Grover about it. And then I put the two together.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
Jay always called me Wendy girl. When he would call, he would say Wendy girl. And Jay was always a very happy man. And when he called, he didn't say Wendy girl. He just said, you know, good morning, Wendy. And I knew by the tone of his voice that something wasn't right. And then he expressed to me that Diane had passed.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
And when he said it, I guess it was under the assumption that I knew exactly who she was. And I was like, I'm sorry, Dad, I don't know who you're referring to. And then he explained the Diane that worked at U.S. Enterprise with him and Mr. Corey. And then I was like, whew. And then we just established that dialogue of the things that would occur.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
Because of the extensive nature of an autopsy, I had to do certain things to make sure that Diane was presentable. And when I began that, I was quite shocked at the Diane looked when she came back to me she was extremely presentable which is not the case most of the time when you come from a county after an autopsy and with that I was shocked and I made a phone call to Mr. Grover and I asked him
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
if after the county had performed their autopsy, if maybe there was an additional private autopsy performed. And he said no. And he asked why. And I replied with how she looked. She didn't look like anyone I had ever received from Fulton County. And when I say that, I'm not being disrespectful towards Fulton County, but it was not something that was a normal occurrence. She was quite presentable.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
Mr. McIver is the one ultimately under Georgia law that had to make the arrangements with me. And because of everything going on, I do this with everybody. I try to make this process as easy as possible. And nobody wants to come back and forth to me. I understand. I tried to call him several times on his mobile as well as his office. It went to voicemail.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
Could not tell you verbatim, but the voicemail referred to something as simply that he was out of the office in the state of mourning, leave a message, and he would get back. She was cremated on the 28th day. He came to me when I got the death certificates, which were filed the 30th day of September. I obtained those, I want to say, the fourth day of October. He called me.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
He was at Mr. Corey's residence. I told him that the death certificates were ready. He needed 20. An hour later, he came to me. I had the 20 death certificates with me. Mr. McIver wanted 10 small, we refer to them as keepsakes, but miniature urns, if you will. And he had asked for different urns, classic with the Western flair or theme. Well, there was a discussion of monies and social security.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
When I explained to him that the death benefit of social security, because I assumed that both he and Diane were of the higher income bracket. So when a spouse passes away, you can either draw your Social Security or theirs, whichever is the greater amount of money, but not both. And that seemed as though that was a little out of sorts for Mr. McIver. He didn't quite understand that.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
And then we spoke of money, the charge for our services. And it was, in my opinion, a minimal amount of money in conjunction. But he asked if he had to pay the bill today. And then I inquired, asked to kind of, I don't understand, explain a little bit more. And he expressed to me that he wanted to wait until he opened an estate account to pay the bill that he didn't want to commingle funds.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
Diane was with me in a simple box, and we just kind of waited. Then there was a lady who was the sister of another woman who lived in the same residential areas, Mr. McIver. And I guess things, conversations were had about monies not being exchanged. And this particular woman called me to ask me if the invoice had been paid. And I was honest and told her no.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
And on the 22nd of October, she paid that bill with the understanding that I would never divulge who she was. And I explained to her that I would honor that promise as long as I could until or if in the event that there was an investigation in Fulton County came to me with the subpoena records and then I would have to divulge who she was. She understood that. So that bill was paid on the 22nd.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
On the 1st of November, I got a letter from Mr. McIver that was dated the 28th day of October, post-Martin 31st, with a check and a handwritten letter stating that he had opened an estate account through a particular bank by the name of Brand Banking. He apologized for the delay, and a check was written for the amount of services incurred.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
I then turned around on the 1st of November, same day, wrote a letter back to Mr. McIver explaining to him that the bill had been paid in full, I was returning his check, and that he of course at any time could come for the cremains. Mr. McIver could never come to an urn he wanted. And then I had referred him to a gentleman that makes custom urns.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
maybe he could provide Mr. McIver with what he was looking for. And on the eighth day of November is when Mr. McIver came back to me and took the 10 keepsakes and the residual amount of cremains for Mrs. McIver in a simple box.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Deadly Fortune | 3. Hiding
I have had people abandon cremains. Over the years that I've done this, some just leave them indefinitely. Of course, we have to keep them. We notify them that they need to come and receive their loved ones into their care. I have, but not in a situation, I guess, like this. And I know that everybody grieves differently. Shock can do different things to people.