How to get arrested in a murder-for-hire plot 101
School nurse Cathy Bennett (left) and elementary school teacher Angela Nolen, both who worked at Sontag Elementary School. They were arrested and charged earlier this week in an alleged plot to hire a “hit man” to kill Nolen’s ex-husband. The “hit man” turned out to be an undercover cop.
Early in my career, I was a police reporter in Maryland. During that stint, I developed a good working relationship with a state trooper named Butch. He was a detective, with bushy red hair and a bushy beard, who typically wore blue jeans and boots. In other words, he looked and dressed like an outlaw biker, and sometimes he worked undercover.
One day we were talking about his job. Most of it was investigating run-of-the-mill crimes. The big one I had helped him with was a massive identity-theft case in which he had a pretty good photograph of the clever thief but had no idea who the guy was or where he lived. One big story on the front page about the computer-savvy con man’s lurid exploits was all it took to nail down his name and address.
Butch also told me that a less-frequent role he played was “the hit man.” Just about every state police operation has one, he informed me. And they’re responsible for most every headline you ever read about “Person A” being arrested and charged with trying to hire “a hit man” to kill “Person B.” Because the hit man is usually an undercover cop.
My thoughts flitted back to that story this week as a Franklin County elementary school teacher and school nurse were arrested and charged with soliciting murder in alleged plot to kill the teacher’s ex-husband. This happens with depressing regularity. The last time in these parts was 2009, when a son and his mother from Covington were popped for trying to hire a hit man to bump off the younger man’s father so his mom could collect life insurance proceeds.
Three things these cases have in common are:
- Person B is usually a loved one or ex-loved one of Person A;
- Person A pays money to an undercover cop and says “I want [Person B] dead;” and
- Person A has never been arrested or charged with a crime before.
It was Butch who explained to me way back in the 1980s how this game worked. Essentially, it starts with a police agency designating an undercover cop as a “hit man” and getting him some training as to how to make these cases.
Then, the cops pass the word to bartenders at dive bars and folks they arrest for more pedestrian crimes. Essentially the police trade future “brownie points” to crooks for referring murder-solicitation cases to them.
Then, the cops sit back and wait for the next upstanding citizen who tries to hire a hit man. Usually it’s somebody who’s been watching way too many crime movies and TV shows.
Because despite the enduring myth, there just aren’t that many professional assassins-for-hire out there. Sure, organized crime groups have designated killers, and there are odd cases of people who do commit murder for money. But it’s complete folly to believe that the average Joe or Mary can hire a hit man by asking around for the name of a good one, kind of like the way you’d hire a plumber.
But that’s usually what happens. Joe or Mary goes to a bar and strikes up a conversation. Or they ask a friend who has underworld connections, and the friend agrees to help. Whammo, blammo, and the next thing you know, Joe or Mary is cutting a deal with a menacing-looking character — usually in an undercover police car outfitted with hidden recording equipment.
And the next thing you know, their pictures are splashed all over the front page.
February 23, 2013 - 11:10 AM
There’s obviously a lot going on in this case with accusations of physical and mental abuse, a bitter divorce, a custody fight, a protective order, a May/December type marriage and who knows what else will come out.
But at the bottom, there is no justification for seeking a hit man.
This is a truly weird case. I knew a man once who claimed to have been an actual “hit man” so I know they exist and the secret to success is to have a total not connectable stranger do it, so the police do need a unit for this crime.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/23/angela-nolen-kindergarten-hit-man-ex-husband_n_2748645.html
We made HuffPo!
When I read this story, I wondered how many people actually have friends who direct them to a hit man. I would be at a loss in providing information for such a service.
Actually, I know the accused and the potential victim pretty well. Dr. J. Paul Strickler was one of the first teaching interviews I had and I came pretty close to working for him. Last time I saw the couple, they were dancing at one of the Thursday beach music parties downtown. I guess haven’t gone so well since then.
Franklin County.
Home Sweet Home
Let’s recap the past year or two….
Pray to Jesus at public events.
(Screw the Constitution.)
Moonshine capitol of the world.
(Proud as can be of drinking gasoline.)
Police officer murders ex-wife.
(In front of daughter.)
Police chief may have accidently caused it.
(Because his minor daughter friends with married cop?)
And the police evidence room was available car trunks.
(Where evidence was “secure”, until it wasn’t .)
Car decal stickers expire months before new ones available.
(Earning the county a yearly fortune in fraudulent ticket fines.)
Are rules made for people or are people made for rules?
(A dumb question, as the judges are the offspring of slaveholders.)
Then they fired the School Superintendent.
(First paying all his future salary.)
But they kept these 2 boobs as teacher and school nurse.
(Or is it 4 boobs?)
(Or is it 6 boobs and we count the ones on their necks?)
I know there’s more, but I only had 5 minutes…
OK, Cue the obligatory. “This must be Suzie”.
Suzie | February 23, 2013 at 10:28 pm
OK, Cue the obligatory. “This must be Suzie”.
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We don’t even know who you are, ma’am. Try back sometime in April. We’ll try to care then.
Looks like whatitsname’s given up that Lent thing.
sandi,
are you serious?
you …claim… to have known a man “who once …claimed… to have been a hit man”, …then you said, “so I …know… they must exist…..”.
Gee sandi, there’s soooo much wrong with your post that I don’t know where to begin…
Hey! I know. I’ll just let it stand. It’s just too precious to do anything more with it.
Re: comment #6
Can’t be. The woman in the article is only 47 y/o.
Does this really count as a topic important enough to break a Lent promise over?
Contra,
She loves us so much that she just can’t stay away.
P.S. If you believe that, I have some land in….
The notion that hey frank would make fun of something someone else posted just boggles the mind.
SteveC, at least he admits that he doesn’t “know where to begin”. It’s a start.
Re: Ron May at 6:11 pm
You are not talking about ocean-front in Arizona, are you.
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Hey steve c,
thanks for noticing. BTW, I can see you posting the exact same post as sandi, but in your case, it wouldn’t be as funny….it would be kinda on the sad side.
Hey frank @2/24 at 11:24pm,
“thanks for noticing”. Thanks for noticing what, that your posts make no sense?
hey frank, has it ever occurred to you that out of all of the regular posters, your submissions garner the most responses for being uninformed, poorly composed and illogical? Think about that for a bit, hey frank; people aren’t just making fun of you just because you dress funny.