Rickey Lewis executed for murder of George Newman and rape of fiancee: Dead Silent investigates

Dead Silent on ID is investigating the brutal murder of George Newman and the rape of his fiancee, Connie Hilton, in 1990 in a rural area of Smith County, Texas, about 90 miles east of Dallas.

Rickey Lynn Lewis, a career criminal, was executed for the brutal crime 23 years later.

On September 17, 1990, Rickey Lewis and two other men, who have never been identified, broke into the rural home of George Newman and Connie Hilton,

Connie was awoken during the night when their dog began barking, and when she went to investigate, she discovered Lewis standing in their hallway with a shotgun. On hearing his fiancee scream, 45-year-old George came running into the hall only to be gunned down. Their dog was also shot.

Connie was beaten and sexually assaulted by Lewis for over an hour, during which time the two other men robbed the home. Connie was then left tied and bound in the kitchen while the three assailants fled the scene in her truck.

Connie was eventually able to free herself and escape the house. She drove to a nearby store where she was able to raise the alarm.

Rickey Lewis arrested a short time later

The police collared Lewis three days later after being spotted with stolen items from Connie and George’s home. He was further linked to the crime through DNA evidence; his blood was located in the truck and the house, and his semen was also discovered at the crime scene.

Lewis already had a lengthy criminal record and had only been paroled just six months before the rape and murder. He had been serving a 25-year sentence for his third burglary.

Detectives subsequently learned that two months before the attack on Geroge and Connie, Lewis had stolen a truck and led police on a high-speed chase. And just four days before the attack, he had robbed a store with a shotgun in Tyler, TX.

In April 2103, Rickey Lewis was executed by the state of Texas with an injection of a lethal dose of pentobarbital. For his final words, he told Connie, “If I hadn’t raped you, you wouldn’t have lived.” He also insisted that one of the other men killed George, but he refused to name them.

More from Investigation Discovery

Follow the links to read about more crimes profiled on ID this month.

When Denise Vasseur tried to end her affair with fellow San Diego zookeeper, Patrick Hamilton, he responded with extreme violence. Her body has never been located, but Hamilton admitted to burying the remains in the Anzo-Boregga desert.

The bizarre case involving the death of Todd Stermer has yet to be solved. Did his wife Linda murder him, or was it a tragic accident?

Dead Silent airs at 10/9c on Investigation Discovery.