A Boston man was sentenced to 92 months of incarceration followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to charges of offering to pay a contract killer $8,000 to kill his estranged wife and her boyfriend, though he was actually dealing with an undercover federal agent.
Authorities were tipped off by an informant in November 2022 that Mohammed Chowdhury, 47, was seeking help to have his wife killed, and the informant provided Chowdhury's phone number to law enforcement. An undercover agent posing as a contract killer then contacted him, and Chowdhury met with the agent and agreed to pay $4,000 per killing, authorities said.
Chowdhury pleaded guilty to two counts of using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire.
“Mr. Chowdhury literally thought he could get away with murder,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “Mr. Chowdhury’s disturbing conduct – in combination with the misogyny and dehumanization he expressed in trying to carry out this plot – speak volumes about how dangerous he is. This case represents the most extreme form of domestic violence and we will use all tools at our disposal to protect women in abusive relationships.”
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An attorney for Chowdhury did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In his conversations with undercover agents, authorities said Chowdhury claimed his wife wouldn’t let him see his children and that “he wanted the undercover agents to rob and beat his wife and her boyfriend so that he would not be a suspect.”
Chowdhury went on to ask how they might get rid of the body and repeatedly told them that he didn't want there to be any evidence, according to prosecutors. He also provided the undercover agents with a photograph of his wife and her new boyfriend as well as the addresses where they lived and they worked, and their work schedules.
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“Anyone willing to hire a hitman to kill a once beloved family member and her new boyfriend is clearly a danger to the community,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “Thankfully, the FBI Boston’s Violent Crimes Task Force was able to thwart this deadly and horrific plot. Violent criminals like Mohammed Chowdhury need to be locked up, for everyone’s safety, and today’s sentence ensures he won’t be able to harm anyone for a significant period of time.”
