Steve Gordon, Texas man, charged in Craigslist murder-for-hire plot

(CBS) ALLEN, Texas - Steve Gordon, a husband and father in Texas, is accused of using Craigslist to hire a hit man to kill his wife, CBS DFW reports.

According to the station, Gordon, who denies the allegations, says it all started when he posted an ad looking for someone to help him get his wife deported.

"I just simply asked on Craigslist, 'How do you revoke a green card?' It was out of depression, and the next morning I deleted it," Gordon told the station.

The 49-year-old web engineer says he was in an unhappy marriage with his Malaysian wife.

Robert Bass reportedly replied to Gordon's Craigslist post and the two men met at a Plano gas station where Bass says they discussed murdering Gordon's wife.

"He dropped three grand on my floorboard and said get it done," Bass said, according to the station.

The murder was allegedly supposed to take place a few days ago, reports the station, but police said they arrested the two men before anything could happen.

Authorities reportedly found text messages on the two men's cell phones plotting the murder, but both men deny they were planning to kill anyone.

"I wouldn't hurt anybody," Gordon told the station.

Gordon says he paid Bass $10,000 as extortion money because Bass threatened to kill him as well as his wife.

Both men are charged with conspiracy to commit capital murder.

Gordon's wife declined a request by CBS DFW to comment.