New Jersey man tried to hire "cheap" hitman to kill 13-year-old girl, prosecutors say
A 57-year-old New Jersey man has been federally charged, accused of trying to hire a hitman to kill a 13-year-old girl in Texas, authorities announced Tuesday.
Armando Conceicao of Newark is charged with one count each of conspiracy to commit murder for hire and causing another to travel interstate or using interstate facilities with intent that a murder for hire be committed, the U.S. attorney's office said.
In May of 2021, Conceicao held a meeting with a person – identified in the federal indictment only as "individual 1" – and provided him with the victim's address, photography and cash, according to a criminal indictment from U.S. attorney's office. "Individual 1" then drove from New Jersey to Texas, where he stayed for about one week, during which he took photographs of the victim's home and surrounding area before returning to New Jersey, the indictment reads.
On Nov. 1, 2021, Conceicao met with "individual 1" again to discuss a plan to kill the girl, according to the indictment. "Individual 1" told Conceicao that he knows "a guy" who is "cheap, he's charging fifteen bucks, ten bucks, problem solved," the indictment reads.
During the meeting, according to the indictment, "individual 1" asked, "If the whole family is there, how's it going to be?"
Conceicao allegedly told "individual 1" to follow through with the plan and murder the girl, adding, "finish with the rest. I don't care," the indictment states.
Federal prosecutors did not provide a possible motive for Coneicao, or his connection to the girl. The identity of "individual 1" was also not released.
The girl is safe, authorities said. There was no word on how the alleged plan was discovered, or possibly thwarted.
If convicted as charged on the murder-for-hire count, Conceicao faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.