Photo: Google MapsA New Jersey man who exchanged sexually explicit photographs and videos with a 13-year-old boy — andthen tried to have the child killedso that he couldn’t testify against him — was sentenced Tuesday to 78 months in prison.According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey, John Michael Musbach, 34, of Haddonfield, pleaded guilty in February to one count of knowingly and intentionally using and causing another to use a facility of interstate and foreign commerce (the internet) with the intention that a murder be committed.Musbach’s case came to light in the summer of 2015 when the parents of the 13-year-old victim found out about the inappropriate online exchanges and contacted police. Musbach was arrested in March 2016.Subsequently, “Musbach decided to have the victim killed so that the victim could not testify against him in the pending criminal case,” the press release states.According to the release, Musbach went on a murder-for-hire website on the dark web and asked if a 14-year-old was too young of a target. When he heard back that the victim’s age wasn’t an issue, he paid approximately 40 bitcoin — the equivalent of $20,000 at the time, according to the release — for the hit.Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.But when Musbach was asked for an additional $5,000 to secure the hit, he tried to cancel and asked for a refund. At that point, the administrator of the website told him the site was actually a scam and threatened to tell authorities.Rocco C. Cipparone, Musbach’s lawyer, said in a statement to PEOPLE after Musbach’s guilty plea that his client “decided to put this matter behind him without a trial, and accepted his responsibility.“Cipparone said in the statement that Musbach’s behavior was “aberrational for him.”If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
Photo: Google Maps
A New Jersey man who exchanged sexually explicit photographs and videos with a 13-year-old boy — andthen tried to have the child killedso that he couldn’t testify against him — was sentenced Tuesday to 78 months in prison.According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey, John Michael Musbach, 34, of Haddonfield, pleaded guilty in February to one count of knowingly and intentionally using and causing another to use a facility of interstate and foreign commerce (the internet) with the intention that a murder be committed.Musbach’s case came to light in the summer of 2015 when the parents of the 13-year-old victim found out about the inappropriate online exchanges and contacted police. Musbach was arrested in March 2016.Subsequently, “Musbach decided to have the victim killed so that the victim could not testify against him in the pending criminal case,” the press release states.According to the release, Musbach went on a murder-for-hire website on the dark web and asked if a 14-year-old was too young of a target. When he heard back that the victim’s age wasn’t an issue, he paid approximately 40 bitcoin — the equivalent of $20,000 at the time, according to the release — for the hit.Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.But when Musbach was asked for an additional $5,000 to secure the hit, he tried to cancel and asked for a refund. At that point, the administrator of the website told him the site was actually a scam and threatened to tell authorities.Rocco C. Cipparone, Musbach’s lawyer, said in a statement to PEOPLE after Musbach’s guilty plea that his client “decided to put this matter behind him without a trial, and accepted his responsibility.“Cipparone said in the statement that Musbach’s behavior was “aberrational for him.”If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
A New Jersey man who exchanged sexually explicit photographs and videos with a 13-year-old boy — andthen tried to have the child killedso that he couldn’t testify against him — was sentenced Tuesday to 78 months in prison.
According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey, John Michael Musbach, 34, of Haddonfield, pleaded guilty in February to one count of knowingly and intentionally using and causing another to use a facility of interstate and foreign commerce (the internet) with the intention that a murder be committed.
Musbach’s case came to light in the summer of 2015 when the parents of the 13-year-old victim found out about the inappropriate online exchanges and contacted police. Musbach was arrested in March 2016.
Subsequently, “Musbach decided to have the victim killed so that the victim could not testify against him in the pending criminal case,” the press release states.
According to the release, Musbach went on a murder-for-hire website on the dark web and asked if a 14-year-old was too young of a target. When he heard back that the victim’s age wasn’t an issue, he paid approximately 40 bitcoin — the equivalent of $20,000 at the time, according to the release — for the hit.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
But when Musbach was asked for an additional $5,000 to secure the hit, he tried to cancel and asked for a refund. At that point, the administrator of the website told him the site was actually a scam and threatened to tell authorities.
Rocco C. Cipparone, Musbach’s lawyer, said in a statement to PEOPLE after Musbach’s guilty plea that his client “decided to put this matter behind him without a trial, and accepted his responsibility.”
Cipparone said in the statement that Musbach’s behavior was “aberrational for him.”
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
source: people.com
