Sledge pleads guilty in murder-for-hire plot

    Jessica Sledge, who is accused of using the internet to hire a hitman to kill her husband, changed her plea to guilty on February 7.

    Sledge used the dark web to hire a hitman, made three Bitcoin payments totaling $10,000 to the alleged hitman, and communicated with an FBI agent posing as a hitman via a cell phone and WhatsApp, all of which was a violation of federal statute.

    U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Reeves accepted Sledge’s plea during a hearing Monday, February 7, and set a sentencing date for May 16, 2022.

    She will remain behind bars at the Madison County Detention Center until then.

    She and her attorney appeared at the hearing via teleconference.

    Sledge showed little emotion as the judge asked her various questions and read the record to her.

    The 40-year-old is facing up to 10 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release.

    She also faces up to $250,000 in fines related to the crime.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office is providing a sentencing recommendation as part of the plea agreement. That recommendation has not been made public.