Constant State of Fear

When you suspect your business partner has defrauded you in a six-figure real estate deal and your lawsuit was unsuccessful, what recourse do you have? To solve his problem, murder-for-hire might not have been the first thought that came to mind, but that’s the path the man in this true crime went down.

After losing his lawsuit against his partner, he enlisted the help of a friend to set the wheels in motion to kill the partner. He admitted he’d thought about it for a while and had planned for the event. All the friend had to do was follow his directions. He’d already done the surveillance, stolen a license plate to use on the friend’s vehicle, given the “hitman” a crossbow with arrows, told him where to lie and wait next door to the business partner’s business, told him how to dispose of the body, and gave him money.

What the disgruntled business partner didn’t plan for was the friend telling law enforcement about the scheme. Early on, the FBI began recording conversations between the two men as the plot took shape.

They arrested the man with a grudge. Fifteen months after discussing the plan with his friend, the man confessed and pleaded guilty to one felony count of use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of attempted murder-for-hire.

Three months after accepting the plea agreement, a judge sentenced the 66-year-old man to over eight years in federal prison.

The victim said in his victim statement letter,

“This is not just something that happened once. It is something that will affect me every day for the rest of my life.”

He also shared that since being informed that he was the target of a murder-for-hire scheme, he has lived in a “constant state of fear.” Forced to abandon his business out of concern over the risk of being in a public place every day, he also lost his financial security, his apartment and everything inside it.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice

All data and information provided is for information and research purposes only and not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, or individual. Criminal cases may have been appealed or verdicts overturned since I researched the case. All information is provided on an as-is basis.