A Florida man who paid an undercover cop thinking he was a hitman ready to complete an assassination for him pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire this week in federal court.
Makram Khashman, 58, was arrested and charged with murder-for-hire earlier this year after he was outed by an informant for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms who reported the man was looking for a hitman. The informant notified an undercover agent for the ATF who told Khashman he was a gun-for-hire.
The defendant reportedly paid the agent $5,000 to murder an individual he claimed stole more than $1 million, along with an entire business, from him as per a criminal complaint filed in March.
Khashman admitted he arranged a meeting with the undercover official in February and told him to use whatever means to kill the intended target, according to federal prosecutors. The defendant confided in the agent about how he and his family were forced to live on the streets after the person stole $1 million and a business he said was worth $3 million.
He told the agent to do "whatever had to be done," suggesting he kill the individual with an injection. The undercover agent named his price and said once he had initial payment along with the target's details and description, the alleged thief would be dead within a week.
Cash changed hands at the next meeting the pair had in March in Plantation where Khashman fulfilled half of a $5,000 payment, providing the target's name, car details and work schedule. He revealed that he approached a few other hitman with the job before meeting with the informant, telling him they charged anywhere between $5,000 t0 $10,000.
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He said the second half of the money would be provided once the agent sent photos proving he killed the target, according to the news release.
It was claimed the undercover agent "directly asked Khashman if he wanted the victim gone, to which Khashman affirmed, and declared he 'didn't give a ****." The official told the defendant he would fly some help out from New York and it would take a couple of days to monitor the target before killing him.
The undercover officials warned the defendant the transaction couldn't be undone, according to the criminal complaint filed earlier this year. He didn't want to hear it. “No ****,” he replied, saying he had no problem doing it himself before ordering the undercover agent to stop asking questions.
Khashman pleaded guilty in federal court in Fort Lauderdale and faces up to 10 years in prison, according to prosecutors. His sentencing is slated for Jan. 7, 2025.