N.C. man sentenced to 6 years in prison for trying to hire Hitman on the Deep Web, buying lethal radioactive substance – A man was sentenced to more than six years in prison for a bizarre murder-for-hire plot that involved hiring a hitman and purchasing radioactive substance to poison food.
On Friday, a U.S. district judge ordered 28-year-old Bryant Riyanto Budi, of Matthews, to serve 78 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release, for attempted possession of radioactive material with intent to cause death or serious bodily injury to another person.
According to filed court documents and Friday’s sentencing hearing, from April 22-June 1, 2018, Budi attempted to get radioactive material, and did so with the intent to seriously injure or kill someone.
Court documents show that Budi contacted an undercover FBI agent online to purchase a lethal dose of a radioactive substance. In his communications with the undercover agent, Budi expressed his intent to use the radioactive substance to kill an unnamed individual.
On May 31, 2018, officials say a package containing a substitute for the radioactive material was delivered to an address in Charlotte as instructed by Budi.
Budi was arrested on June 1, 2018, after he got the package, and pleaded guilty on Nov. 30, 2018. Separately, Budi also contacted and hired a HSI undercover agent to murder a specified victim.
Court officials say this is the first conviction of its kind (murder for hire involving radiological material).