KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) A Kansas man has pleaded not guilty to charges that he tried to hire a man to kill his wife.
Thirty-seven-year-old Lee D. Smith of Basehor entered the plea Thursday in federal court in Kansas City, Mo.
Prosecutors allege Smith agreed to pay a man $1,800 to murder Smith’s wife. They say Smith drove the man in May to an office in Overland Park where his wife worked to plan the murder.
The Lawrence Journal-World reports the man was a confidential law enforcement informant and Smith’s wife was never in danger.
A motive for the alleged plot has never been disclosed but court records show the couple had financial problems.
Smith remains in custody. A judge in May declined to set bail.
