Boston man sentenced to 8 years for murder-for-hire plot targeting his ex-wife, her boyfriend

A Boston man was sentenced to nearly eight years in prison for attempting to hire a contract killer to murder his ex-wife and her boyfriend.

Mohammed Chowdhury, 47, was sentenced to 92 months behind bars followed by three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty in January to two counts of use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire.

Chowdhury offered to pay $8,000 total to someone he believed was a contract killer to murder his ex-wife and her new boyfriend, whom she allegedly left Chowdhury for, but the person he was attempting to hire was actually an undercover federal agent, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

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"Anyone willing to hire a hitman to kill a once beloved family member and her new boyfriend is clearly a danger to the community," Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Boston Division, said in a news release. "Thankfully, the FBI Boston’s Violent Crimes Task Force was able to thwart this deadly and horrific plot. Violent criminals like Mohammed Chowdhury need to be locked up, for everyone’s safety, and today’s sentence ensures he won’t be able to harm anyone for a significant period of time."

In November 2022, law enforcement received a tip from an informant that Chowdhury was soliciting assistance to have his ex-wife killed and had paid someone to carry out the crime, but that the person took the money without following through.

Chowdhury reportedly told the informant that he needed the murders to be completed as soon as possible and that he would pay to make it happen, even robbing a store to obtain the money if necessary.

Law enforcement was provided with Chowdhury's phone number by the informant. An undercover agent pretending to be a contract killer then contacted him about his murder-for-hire plot.

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Chowdhury met with undercover agents posing as the contract killer and their associates on multiple occasions in December 2022 and January 2023. He told agents his ex-wife would not allow him to see his children and that he was frustrated with her Westernization and independent thinking.

He also said he wanted the agents to make the killings look like a robbery and beating and stressed that he wanted no evidence left behind that would make him a suspect.

Chowdhury provided agents with photographs of his ex-wife and her boyfriend, told them where they lived and worked, and provided their work schedules. He ultimately agreed to pay $4,000 per murder, with a $500 deposit.

On Jan. 17, 2023, Chowdhury met with the agents and provided the $500 deposit. He was then taken into custody.

"Mr. Chowdhury literally thought he could get away with murder," Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in the news release. "Mr. Chowdhury’s disturbing conduct – in combination with the misogyny and dehumanization he expressed in trying to carry out this plot – speak volumes about how dangerous he is. This case represents the most extreme form of domestic violence and we will use all tools at our disposal to protect women in abusive relationships."

According to court records, Chowdhury was charged in October 2019 with violating an Abuse Prevention Order prohibiting him from abusing, contacting or coming within a certain distance of his ex-wife. 

Chowdhury pleaded to sufficient facts and received a continuance without a finding.