Xin Guang Guo, a 48-year-old resident of Plymouth, North Carolina, pleaded guilty on April 6 before United States District Judge Harvey Bartle III to two counts of using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of a murder-for-hire. The announcement was made by United States Attorney David Metcalf.
The case centers on Guo’s attempt to pay $30,000 for the murders of two individuals living in the Philadelphia area. According to court filings, Guo sought out a hitman to kill his former business partner and that person’s paramour. Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) obtained text messages written by Guo that detailed his plan and provided identifying information about the intended victims.
Phone calls monitored by ATF agents revealed that Guo agreed to pay $15,000 for each murder. He arranged a meeting with someone he believed was a hitman in Philadelphia on October 6. At this meeting, he gave $2,500—intended for purchasing a gun—to an undercover ATF officer and requested photographic proof that both victims had been killed before paying the remainder.
Guo was arrested shortly after leaving the meeting without incident. He had been charged by indictment following his arrest in October last year.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 15. If convicted on all counts at sentencing, Guo faces up to 20 years in prison.
