Daijiworld Media Network- Washington
Washington, May 21: In a spine-chilling revelation from the United States, federal authorities have uncovered a murder-for-hire plot that sounds straight out of a crime thriller. A 57-year-old man from New York, Jeal Sutherland, has pleaded guilty to planning the murder of his romantic rival, allegedly with intentions to dispose of the body by feeding it to pigs on a farm.
According to a statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice, Sutherland admitted to orchestrating the plan between November 2024 and January 2025, seeking to eliminate the father of his ex-girlfriend’s child — a man he considered his romantic adversary. In exchange for the murder, Sutherland had promised to cancel a debt owed by the individual he hired to carry out the act.
However, what Sutherland didn’t realise was that the would-be hitman and even the so-called hog farmer were in fact FBI informants. In a swift and well-coordinated operation, the FBI intervened and arrested Sutherland on January 27, ensuring that the intended victim remained unharmed.
In a disturbing twist, Sutherland had also placed a dead Canada goose on his target's mother's doorstep, embedding a threatening message in its beak, apparently in an effort to terrorize the victim’s family in the run-up to the planned crime.
Further investigations revealed that Sutherland had previously tried to intimidate the mother of his ex-girlfriend's partner by bribing another individual to burn her car, hoping to prevent her from testifying at a custody hearing. Shockingly, that individual too turned out to be an informant in the FBI's tightly-run probe.
“Sutherland’s twisted plan was not just about murder; it was meant to intimidate, terrorise and eliminate. His evil scheme was to violently end a man's life and scare his family into silence,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Craig L Tremaroli, praising the timely intervention by law enforcement.
Sutherland’s lawyer, however, claimed that his client was motivated by a desire to protect a loved one, as reported by NBC. Yet the gravity of the charges tells a grim tale of obsession, manipulation, and calculated violence.
U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino is set to pronounce the sentence on September 22. Sutherland now faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release.
The case stands as a chilling reminder of how jealousy and vengeance can spiral into a criminal nightmare — and how sharp, coordinated efforts by law enforcement can foil even the most sinister plots.