Jury begins deliberating in love triangle murder trial of woman who 'conspired with married lover to kill her husband' after court listens to VERY AWKWARD moment she was confronted by her lover's suspicious wife

• e-mail

Jury deliberations have begun in the murder trial of Denise Williams, pictured above during closing arguments in Leon County court on Friday morning

Jury deliberations have begun in the love triangle murder trial of a Florida woman accused of conspiring to kill her husband with the help of her married lover nearly two decades ago.   

During closing arguments in Leon County court on Friday, the prosecution painted defendant Denise Williams, 48, as cold-hearted adulteress who hatched the plot to murder her husband Mike Williams so she and her married lover Brian Winchester could collect his $1.75million insurance policy.  

Mike vanished while duck hunting on a lake near Tallahassee, Florida, in December 2000. Winchester allegedly confessed last year to luring his friend on the trip and shooting him in the face. 

Assistant State Attorney Jon Fuchs on Friday reminded the jury of how emotionless Denise appeared as Winchester recounted the details of the gruesome murder while testifying against his ex-mistress days earlier. 

Prosecutors also played a secret recording of Denise being confronted about the affair and her involvement in Mike's disappearance by Winchester’s first wife Kathy Thomas, who became a police informant after the victim's body was discovered last year. 

In the recording, Thomas reveals that she knew about the elicit affair and accuses Denise of plotting her own husband's murder. Prosecutors argued that the fact that Denise did not appear upset by the accusation and never denied it is proof that she is guilty.  

'It’s not just what she says, it’s what she doesn’t say,' Fuchs told the jury. 'She was accused of murder and the only thing she wanted to know is if Marcus was involved.'

'Why? Because the pact she had with Brian Winchester was that no one else would know.'

Winchester's first wife Kathy Thomas (above in court on Thursday) testified Thursday about her husband's affair with Denise. Thomas became a police informant after Mike's body was found and recorded a phone conversation in which she confronted Denise about his murder earlier this year

During closing arguments in Leon County court on Friday, the prosecution painted Denise as cold-hearted adulteress who hatched the murder plot so she and Winchester could collect his $1.75million insurance policy

In closing arguments Friday, Assistant State Attorney Jon Fuchs (left) noted that Denise did not appear upset by Thomas' accusations and said her lack of denial serves as proof of her guilt. Defense attorney Ethan Way (right) responded by trying to convince the court that the entirety of the blame belongs on Winchester

Defense attorney Ethan Way responded by trying to convince the court that the entirety of the blame belongs on Winchester, whom he painted as an untrustworthy opportunist who was only cooperating with prosecutors to save his own skin.

'Take Brian Winchester away and there is nothing that supports any of these three charges,' Way said in his closing arguments. 'No tangible evidence.

'This is not a case about suspicions, this is not a case about guesses. It’s a murder case.'

The phone call between Thomas and Denise earlier this year was first played in court on Thursday as the informant testified about her suspicions that her husband was having an affair with Denise beginning back in 1999. 

Reading from a script given to her by police, Thomas asked Denise about the murder plot and said: 'Brian told me that y'all planned it.'  

Denise responded: 'Planned what? Oh my God.' 

Thomas later said: 'I know that you know something, Denise'. 

In another segment of the recorded conversation, Thomas says: 'I’ve always just pretended like I don’t know anything - and I do know. 

Denise interrupts her and ask: 'What do you know?'  

Thomas breaks down in tears as she reveals she knew about the affair before Mike's disappearance and speculated about whether he would still be alive if she had said something.

'I’ve always thought to myself if I had said: "Mike, I think Brian has a girlfriend"… I’ve always wondered if he’d still be here,' Thomas said.

'Why couldn’t you all just have gotten a divorce? I’ve always known you’ve loved each other.' 

Florida prosecutors have said Denise planned the 2000 slaying of her husband Mike (pictured together on their wedding day) so she could get a $1.75million insurance payout

The two couples had been close for several years because they all attended North Florida Christian School together. They frequently went on double dates after both pairs got married in 1994.  

Thomas testified that she began to suspect her husband's affair in 1999 after Winchester told her he was on a hunting trip and she later received a call from police that his car was abandoned in a lot near Denise’s home.

She also said that on one occasion Winchester asked her to participate in a threesome with Denise. 

She told the court: 'Whenever it was just me with Brian [Winchester] and Denise, it was uncomfortable. I felt like a third wheel. I felt like I was on a date with the two of them.' 

Thomas confirmed that she went on a spring break trip to Panama City Beach with Denise and Winchester in 2001 after Mike's death. The court had earlier heard that photos were taken during the trip of the two women kissing at a strip club.

Winchester and Thomas eventually split and he then later married his friend Mike's widow five years after his death. Their relationship soured and they divorced in 2015. 

Denise, Mike, Winchester and Thomas were all close friends and attended North Florida Christian School together. Thomas testified that she became suspicious about an affair between Winchester and Denise beginning in 1999. Denise (top row center) Mike (bottom row second from right) and Winchester (bottom right) are circled in red above in yearbook photos 

Courtesy  WTXL 

When Mike first disappeared, it was initially believed he had fallen from his boat and that his body had been devoured by alligators.   

It was revealed years later that Williams had died from a shotgun blast to the head and had been buried near a lake. 

Winchester confessed last year to the cold case murder, which resulted in Denise's arrest in May on murder, fraud, conspiracy and accessory after the fact charges. 

Mike's body wasn't found until last year after prosecutors offered Winchester immunity in the murder case while he was being sentenced to 20 years in prison for kidnapping Denise at gunpoint, making her promise not to reveal their alleged secret. 

Thomas testified on Thursday that a week after Winchester was arrested in 2016, Denise had contacted her and asked her to tell him that: 'I'm not talking'.  

Mike (left) disappeared in December 2000 while duck hunting near Tallahassee. His death was ruled an accident until his body was found 17 years later. Denise (right) was arrested and implicated in May of this year

Denise, 48, (left, in court on Thursday) stands accused of conspiring to kill her husband Mike Williams with the help of her married lover Brian Winchester (right, in court Wednesday) nearly two decades ago in Florida

Earlier in the trial, prosecutors argued that Winchester was the person who helped Mike fill out forms for a $1million life insurance policy. He also helped Denise apply for $1.75million in insurance funds following Mike's death.  

Winchester also took to the stand to detail how he and Denise allegedly plotted the murder during their three-year affair. 

Winchester told the court that his friend Mike told him Denise had stopped having sex with him and that he was growing suspicious about her activities. 

He said the growing suspicion and the fact that one of Mike's insurance policies was about to lapse led him and Denise to kill him.

'We knew our window of opportunity was closing,' Winchester testified.

Winchester then tearfully described the plot to kill Williams. 

He had invited Mike duck hunting on a cold December morning and Winchester said he had intended to drown him by pushing him from his canoe. But he said he panicked when he saw Williams struggling in the water to get out of his jacket and duck waders and shot him. 

'He started to yell and I didn't know how to get out of that situation. I had my gun in the boat, and so I loaded my gun and I just made one or two circles around and I ended up circling closer towards him and he was in the water, and as I passed by, I shot him,' he said. 

Mike married his high school sweetheart Denise in 1994 and welcomed a daughter with her five years later. The child was 18 months old when her father vanished and is now aged 18

He said he dragged Williams' body back to shore, put him in his truck and buried him hours later.

'When I shot him, it was dark and there was a bright flash,' Winchester testified, adding later, 'I had to make it happen, I had no choice.'

He also described helping the rescue crews search for his friend's body. 

'I think [my father and I] were the last ones. My dad didn't want to give up... He loved Mike.' 

Denise's attorney, Philip Padovano, told jurors on Tuesday there was no evidence his client was having an affair with Winchester or that she helped plot the killing. 

'There's no tangible evidence or physical evidence to connect Denise Williams to this crime,' Padovano said. 

Denise's attorney, Philip Padovano, told jurors on Tuesday there is no evidence his client was having an affair with Winchester or that she helped plot the killing 

'No confession, no admission, nothing.' 

He told them that Winchester has been given immunity from murder charges in exchange for his testimony and that he was given a lighter sentence in his kidnapping case. In order to find Williams guilty, Padovano told the jury that 'you will have to rely on the word of a murderer and a convicted felon.' 

On cross-examination, Denise's attorney asked Winchester if he was a murderer and a liar, to which Winchester said: 'Yes, sir'. 

Mike and Denise were high school sweethearts and married in 1994 before welcoming a daughter five years later. The child was 18 months old when her father vanished and is now aged 18. 

He disappeared on what would have been the couple's sixth wedding anniversary.  

Authorities launches an exhaustive 44 day search for Mike's body after he vanished in 2000. 

Six months after his disappearance, waders believed to belong to Mike were found floating in perfect condition in the search area. They reportedly showed no signs of an alligator attack. 

Without a body, Denise petitioned to have her husband declared dead due to accidental drowning and she collected his death benefits. 

She married Winchester in December 2005 before they divorced in 2016.