A newlywed accused of hiring a hitman to kill her firefighter husband so she could collect his life insurance money was found guilty of aggravated murder.
Uloma Curry-Walker, 45, faces life in prison without parole for murdering William Walker in November 2013, four months after she married him, Cleveland.com reported.
Jurors delivered the verdict Friday after less than two hours of deliberation.
Prosecutors say Curry-Walker racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt and was close to financial ruin when she solicited assistance from her 17-year-old daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend to search for someone who would kill William Walker.
Curry-Walker’s plan was to collect the insurance money after her husband’s death, prosecutors say.
Investigators found, however, that Curry-Walker’s plan was doomed from the start.
Her husband still had his ex-wife listed as the beneficiary on the insurance policy, so the money went to his ex-wife.
Testimony at the hearing showed that Curry-Walker paid her daughter’s boyfriend, Chad Padgett, $1,000 to ensure that the murder was carried out, CBS News reported.
Padgett initially reached out to his cousin, Chris Hein, to carry out the slaying. When Hein failed to kill Walker, Hein recruited Ryan Dorty to perform the murder.
Prosecutors say Dorty shot Walker four times as he was on his way home from picking up fast food at Curry-Walker’s request.
Padgett, Dorty, Hein, and the daughter all testified against Curry-Walker in exchange for a plea deal.
As part of the plea agreement, Hein agreed to serve 18 years to life. Padgett agreed to 28 years to life in prison, and Dorty accepted a sentence of 23 years to life.
WOIO reports that Curry-Walker will be sentenced August 8.
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