JOLIET, Ill. — A former suburban school bus driver, already sentenced to 76 years in prison for a thwarted murder-for-hire plot, has been found guilty of a foiled second attempt.
Christian Shepherd, 44, of Ottawa, was found guilty of four counts of murder-for-hire solicitation in the second case against a man initially charged with criminal sexual assault in May 2010.
WGN News reported in June that while in prison, Shepherd attempted to hire another inmate to murder the victim he was charged with sexually assaulting, the victim’s mother and two detectives.
Officials said the inmate turned the documents over to police and wore a wire, which allowed authorities to gather audio evidence.
Shepherd then hired a second inmate to kill the initially targeted victims and the first would-be hitman. The second inmate also informed police about Shepherd’s plans.
A judge sentenced Shepherd to 76 years in prison for murder-for-hire solicitation in the case involving the first inmate he attempted to hire as a hitman.
“Shepherd is a soulless predator who was willing to take the lives of five human beings in a heinous attempt to avoid accountability for his own abhorrent crimes,” said Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow after Shepherd’s initial sentencing. “Shepherd is an insidious miscreant who deserves every single day he will be spending in a cold, dark prison cell.”
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Sentencing is Oct. 5.
