GUILTY GA - Natalia Roberts, 30, slain in attempted baby theft, Catoosa County, 19 Sept 2014

Investigators say a north Georgia woman was murdered by a woman who wanted to steal her baby.

It happened near the Georgia-Tennessee border in Catoosa County on September 19. Responding deputies were told that Catherine Goins shot an intruder at the home of her former boyfriend, Tony Richards.

Authorities say Goins had been telling her boyfriend for months that she was pregnant. When he found it out it was a lie and left her, police say Goins went out looking for an infant to make the story true.

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According to Catoosa County Sheriff Gary Sisk, Catherine J. Goins, 37, of Hixson, lured the victim, 30-year-old Natalia Roberts, to her home saying she'd give her some baby clothes.

Instead, investigators said Goins shot Roberts in the back of the head as they walked down a flight of stairs. She then fled with Roberts' two children, ages 3 and 3 weeks.

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Goins allegedly tried to clean up the crime scene, and called the boyfriend to tell him she had shot someone in the house, according to investigators. Then, Goins left the home with the two children, but later returned at the ex-boyfriend’s urging.

Goins initially told police that she shot an intruder in the home. But deputies uncovered the deadly plot during several days of investigating, the Catoosa sheriff said.

On Tuesday, Goins was charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, tampering with evidence, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, the Catoosa Sheriff’s Office said.

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Accused murderer Catherine Goins was not a stranger to law enforcement. Before Friday's shooting, her most recent arrest in Hamilton County was in 2010.
At the time of her arrest, Goins was living in Hixson with her teenage daughter but moved around several times in her past.

Catherine Goins, 37, was arrested six times by the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office during the past 16 years. Her most serious charge before the fatal shooting arrest is of domestic violence assault.

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Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Catherine Goins...

Robert's family says the 3-week-old and 3-year-old kidnapped from the crime scene are doing well. "Her dad, my brother and Natalia's mother have joined forces to raise these children," said Roberts.

Family members say the children are in therapy and it's been stressful.

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A Hixson, Tenn., woman pleaded guilty to murder Friday morning, May 13 in Ringgold, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole nearly two years after she orchestrated a chilling plan to kill a young mother in order to steal her baby.

It’s been 21 months since the family of 30-year-old Natalia Roberts got the news that their loved one had been shot to death while trying to pick up clothes for her infant child. Friday morning, however, those family members sat in the pews behind 38-year-old Catherine Joann Goins as she admitted to the Catoosa County Superior Court that she in fact did commit the crimes she’s accused of.

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