John Glatt - Never Leave Me: A True Story of Marriage, Deception, and Brutal Murder

Dear Reader:

The book you are about to read is the latest bestseller from the St. Martins True Crime Library, the imprint The New York Times calls the leader in true crime! Each month, we offer you a fascinating account of the latest, most sensational crime that has captured the national attention. St. Martins is the publisher of bestselling true crime author and crime journalist Kieran Crowley, who explores the dark, deadly links between a prominent Manhattan surgeon and the disappearance of his wife fifteen years earlier in THE SURGEONS WIFE. Suzy Spencers BREAKING POINT guides readers through the tortuous twists and turns in the case of Andrea Yates, the Houston mother who drowned her five young children in the familys bathtub. In Edgar Award-nominated DARK DREAMS, legendary FBI profiler Roy Hazelwood and bestselling crime author Stephen G. Michaud shine light on the inner workings of Americas most violent and depraved murderers. In the book you now hold, NEVER LEAVE ME, veteran true crime author John Glatt follows the shocking story of a successful man who murdered his wife in a passionate fit of jealousy after she returned home from being with another man.

St. Martins True Crime Library gives you the stories behind the headlines. Our authors take you right to the scene of the crime and into the minds of the most notorious murderers to show you what really makes them tick. St. Martins True Crime Library paperbacks are better than the most terrifying thriller, because its all true! The next time you want a crackling good read, make sure its got the St. Martins True Crime Library logo on the spineyoull be up all night!

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Executive Editor, St. Martins True Crime Library

St. Martins True Crime Library Titles
by John Glatt

For I Have Sinned

Evil Twins

Cradle of Death

Blind Passion

Depraved

Cries in the Desert

Twisted

Deadly American Beauty

One Deadly Night

AN OBSESSIVE HUSBAND,

AN UNFAITHFUL WIFE,

A BRUTAL MURDER

JOHN GLATT

NOTE: If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this stripped book.

NEVER LEAVE ME

Copyright 2006 by John Glatt.

Cover photo of house courtesy New Jersey State Police.
Photo of Jonathan and Michelle Nyce courtesy Larissa Soos.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information address St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

ISBN: 0-312-93427-0
EAN: 80312-93427-9

Printed in the United States of America

St. Martins Paperbacks edition / June 2006

St. Martins Paperbacks are published by St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To William Szigeti (Uncle Bill)
A Lord Among Men

T his is the tenth true crime book I have written and perhaps the most challenging yet. After almost two years of work and nearly fifty interviews, I hope I can shed some light on the strange case of Dr. Jonathan Nyce.

Before his downfall, Dr. Nyce was a world renowned scientist whose revolutionary asthma drug was lauded by the prestigious Nature magazine and Newsweek as a landmark medical discovery. On a wild ride in the get-rich 1990s, he founded a multi-million-dollar company to develop his drug, making millions and living the pampered life of an international jet-setter.

But he and his beautiful young Filipino-born wife, Michelle, the mother of his three children, had a terrible secret, which they carefully hid from everybody. And after 9/11 when the biotech bubble burst, Dr. Nyce was forced out of his company and his life started coming apart at the seams.

Always possessive of Michelle, he now became jealous, furious if she ever talked to other men. But ultimately his jealousy turned out to be well-founded when she started a long-term affair with their gardener. And after several unsuccessful attempts to break-up the passionate affair, Dr. Nyce finally resorted to murder, after Michelle returned home from a date with her lover on a freezing January night.

It is a tragic story but the real victims are the three Nyce children, Alex, Trevor and Samantha, who have lost their mother forever, as well as their father, who is now serving an eight-year jail term for causing Michelles death.

A trust fund has been set up for the childrens future education, and if any readers wish to contribute they can make checks payable to Nyce Children Educational Trust, A/C #2000009726, Hopewell Valley Community Bank, P.O. Box 999, Pennington, NJ 08534.

First I would like to thank Michelles family, Teodoro Riviera and Melodia Ragenil, for their generous help. They expressly wanted the world know what a wonderful mother, sister and daughter Michelle was, as unfortunately her true qualities were never allowed to emerge during the trial.

I would also like to thank Dr. Jonathan Nyce and his parents, for cooperating with my book, by giving me their points of view. Straight after his sentencing, I sat down with Jonathan Nyce for a tough interview about his life, career and his late wife, Michelle, leaving me no doubt that he still loves her in his own way.

I also met his parents Jonathan Jr. and Emma Nyce at their home in Collegeville, PA, in the house where Jonathan and his three brothers grew up. I know how difficult an ordeal it has been for them, from seeing them attend every day of their sons trial, and my heart goes out to them.

Much gratitude is also owed to Michelles best friend, Larissa Soos, for her help from the very beginning. Through hours of interviews over many months, she patiently shared her priceless memories of Michelle with me, still trying to understand how it all could have happened.

This book would not have been possible without the invaluable help of the cases lead Detective Daniel McKeown, of the Hopewell Township Police Department and his sister, Sgt. Karen Ortman of the Mercer County Prosecutors Office. Detective McKeown helped me piece together the investigators theory of what happened on that fateful night.

Likewise I am also in debt to Dr. Nyces tenacious defense attorney Robin Lord and her partner Pat Whelan for their generous help, and for arranging my interview with their client.

On the other side of the courtroom, much gratitude is due to Mercer County Prosecutor Joseph Boccini and his excellent team of Doris Galuchie and Tom Meidt. And I also thank Judge Mathesius for granting me an interview in his chambers after the verdict, where he illuminated certain key decisions he made over the course of the trial.

Extra special thanks must also go to the fabulous team of reporters who covered the trial, and for their generous help. The Times of Trentons Lisa Coryell did a superb job covering the trial, consistently demonstrating all the qualities of a truly great reporter. And also thanks to Scott Frost of the Trentonian, also a great newshound, writer and all-around good guy, with whom I shared many lunches with over the course of the trial. Thanks also to