A 36-year-old man, Brian Thomas Mann, will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the attempted murder of his wife, Hannah Pettey. Mann poisoned her with lead-tainted vitamins, and while her health deteriorated, he tried to get her to take life insurance policies.
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As reported by WAAY, Mann was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole on Wednesday, August 27. He was previously found guilty of attempted murder on June 12 following his 2022 arrest in connection with his wife’s poisoning.
“I believe this was a good glimpse into Brian Mann’s character. I don’t know if he took this seriously or if he takes anything seriously outside of himself and his pursuit of money,” lead prosecutor Garrick Vickery said, as per WAFF. “It’s a peek into his soul. I believe, and Judge Elliot saw that and sentenced him appropriately.”
The judge who sentenced Mann asked the district attorney to notify him when Mann becomes eligible for parole. That way, he will be able to testify against him.
Lead Poisoning
While in court, Pettey testified on her deteriorating health, first becoming sick back in August 2021. At the time, she suffered from back and abdominal pain and nausea. In an attempt to recover from her condition, she took multi-vitamins provided by her husband, Man. At the time, both were in the middle of divorce proceedings.
Without her knowledge, the vitamins she was taking had been tainted with lead. Her health declined so dramatically that she needed to be hospitalized for two months. While at the hospital, it was found, as reported by AL.com, that she had eight times the normal amount of lead in her body.
As Pettey’s health continued to decline, Mann tried to get her to take out several life insurance policies. AL.com reported that, had Hannah Pettey died, Mann could’ve received more than a million dollars in life insurance.
As reported by the New York Post, the amount of lead found in Pettey’s body triggered an investigation. Initially, Mann cooperated with the police, but soon tried to portray himself as a victim, too.
An affidavit stated that Brian Thomas Mann told a nurse that he had “observed a substance in his gut,” believing it to be lead. He claimed that he had done an X-ray on himself. The nurse insisted on a second X-ray, with Mann becoming “visibly nervous.”
Eventually, a second X-ray was done, and a substance in Mann’s colon was observed. However, “it didn’t appear to have been there very long,” the affidavit added.
Eventually, an anonymous tip obtained by police revealed that Mann had remodelled his chiropractor’s office. In his X-ray room’s wall lining, lead was found, a contractor testified in court. Mann was arrested in September 2022.