Cab Driver Wanting to Hire Hit Man

A Chicago cab driver tried to hire a hit man to kill someone who owed him money. He wanted the 38-year-old target dead because he still owed $26,000 that he had paid to bail the victim out of jail on drug charges and hire a lawyer for him in January, according to Law Enforcement.

He became upset over the last several months that he had not been paid back, and he began telling a witness in September that he wanted to hire someone to kill the victim. Then the witness contacted police.

At a meeting Saturday in a Jewel supermarket at Roosevelt Road and Wabash Avenue, he offered to pay $5,000 "plus a tip" for the murder to an undercover officer posing as a hit man. The two met again Monday in the man's cab in the same parking lot, and he gave the officer a copy of the victim's arrest report – which contained a booking photo – and $100 as a down payment.

"The defendant agreed to pay another $2,000 an hour before the murder and the remaining $3,500 once it was complete," the undercover officer said. The murder was supposed to take place Wednesday night, he said.

A judge ordered him to surrender any passports and provide information about the source of any funds he uses to post bond. He was charged with solicitation ofmurder for hire and cocainepossession. She set his bail at $1 million.

Contact a Chicago Criminal Defense Attorney at Acosta, Batovski & Schmiege if you have been arrested for a crime.