"His mother was letting him see them," said Emy. There was reportedly domestic violence at home, according to Catherine's family. "She had started telling me stuff like bits and pieces of things," said Kevin Wesley, Stovyne's brother. The stunning 24-year-old Texas girl had the looks, the energy and infectious drive to be in the public eye. On July 2, 2014, former Hi-Five member Russell Neal was charged with murder in the stabbing death of his wife in Houston.Russell Neal shot to fame in the 1990s with the R&B group Hi-Five, even scoring a number-one hit.
Cops found that out and that's how they were removed.Child Protective Services immediately moves the boys into the care of Catherine's mom, Mary.Then, two months later, a twist that turns the case on its head: Russell's bond is revoked. "It was just the way he came, like you know, he was really stuck up -- 'You ain't got no money, stop it. He loved the ladies back. "I didn't really care for him," said Denise Wesley, Stovyne's sister-in-law. "In record company press kits, Russell, then 16, was promoted as a "Lovelorn Lothario. They released a single called "Favorite Girl" also on the BMW label.
Rescuers move Stovyne to the front yard to administer CPR. "Russell kept telling her 'I've changed, won't do it, we have a family, we need to be together,'" said Glenda.But finally, enough is enough. He's ordered to continue treatment and has another competency hearing in August 2017.While Catherine's heartbroken family sifts through the wreckage of what Russell did, they wonder, Should they have seen this coming? Catherine's relationship with Russell is as washed up as his career. "To her it was everything because he was popular back in the day, but I kept telling her, 'He ain't popular no more.
We wanted to know, Could the convicted murderer tell us anything to help understand what drove his brother Russell to kill Catherine much in the same way he murdered his own wife?But just minutes before our interview was set to begin, all bets were suddenly off.When Ronald Neal got word that we were on prison property, he refused to come out of his cell even though he had previously agreed to do an interview with us. She put the kids in a new private school, homework. "My mom said 'Please Ronald, don't hurt me,'" the boy tells the 911 operator.
What wasn't working was her relationship with the kids' dad, Russell Neal. "You couldn't recognize, the only thing I recognize about her, it was her teeth, her mouth, you know the way she would smile," said Mary Figueroa. It's just months into the marriage when the misgivings grow into regret. Everything changed in our life," said Mary Figueroa, Catherine's mother.Catherine's mom and sisters weren't too sweet on her new "sugar daddy. But money was the least of their problems. Her heartache and rage were all focused on one person "Already know it was him, he was arrested, he turned himself in," said Mary.After Russell's shocking admission to police, he refuses to say any more without a lawyer. "'So you just going to let her sit there, you're not going to let them come in there and help my sister?'" said Kevin. ""He thought he was more than what he was because his brother was a part of Hi-Five," said Niecy Watson, Stovyne's cousin.The family's doubts follow the couple all the way to the altar. He wasn't working either -- not for a long time.But there was a point when Russell Neal was at the top of his game, back when Hi-Five was scoring hit after hit on the pop charts.Jonathan Kinloch was just a kid himself when he got hired as the group's road manager. "Thursday morning when I turned my phone on, on my way to work, I had this phone call from Ronald," said Niecy. "Please, please rush 'cause she's crying, please. She wanted them to succeed," said Glenda.It was a new beginning for Catherine and the kids.A dedicated Hi-Five fan catches a glimpse of Russell Neal at the Houston Police Department. "You couldn't tell it was her," said Glenda.