Is Hiring a Hitman Illegal? Federal Charges and Penalties

Yes, hiring a hitman is illegal, and it is one of the most serious crimes in the federal code. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1958, using any phone call, text, email, wire transfer, or trip across state lines to arrange a killing for payment is a federal felony punishable by 10 years to life in prison, or the death penalty if the target dies.¹ The crime is complete the moment the deal is made. No one has to die, no one has to be hurt, and both the person hiring and the person hired can be prosecuted.

The Federal Law That Makes It a Crime

Section 1958 bans traveling across state lines, using the mail, or using any “facility of interstate or foreign commerce” with the intent that someone be killed in exchange for payment.¹ That phrase sounds narrow, but in practice it covers nearly every modern form of communication: cell phones, email, messaging apps, the internet, and bank transfers. A single text can satisfy the jurisdictional element.

Two features of the statute catch people off guard. The law says “whoever,” which means it applies equally to the person arranging the murder, the person agreeing to carry it out, and anyone conspiring with them. And “payment” is defined broadly: money, something of economic value, or even a promise to pay. Nothing has to change hands for the crime to be complete.

Trying to Hire Someone Is Also a Crime

You do not need to find a willing killer to get charged. Under 18 U.S.C. § 373, seriously trying to persuade someone to commit a violent felony is itself a federal offense when the circumstances strongly corroborate your intent.² Meeting with a person you believe is a hitman, naming a target, and negotiating a price easily clears that bar.

It makes no legal difference that the “hitman” turns out to be an undercover agent, an informant, or someone who walks straight to the police. The offense is in the asking, not in whether the plan could ever succeed. Because murder itself carries life or death, a solicitation conviction can mean up to 20 years in federal prison.²

Conspiracy, Attempt, and Completed Murder

Once two people agree on the plan, 18 U.S.C. § 1117 applies. If any one of them takes any step toward carrying it out, each conspirator can be imprisoned for any term of years or for life.³

If the hitman tries and fails, attempted murder under 18 U.S.C. § 1113 carries up to 20 years.⁴ If the target dies, first-degree murder under 18 U.S.C. § 1111 carries life imprisonment or the death penalty.⁵ Those two statutes apply only on federal property, military bases, and U.S. waters, so most completed murders are prosecuted by the states. The murder-for-hire statute itself reaches almost anywhere because of the interstate commerce hook.

Helping Someone Else Do It

You don’t have to make the deal or carry out the killing to face the same charges. Under 18 U.S.C. § 2, anyone who aids, counsels, commands, or induces the offense is punishable as a principal.⁶ Passing along a hitman’s contact information, lending the money, or driving someone to the meeting can all qualify.

Helping after the fact is a separate crime. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3, an accessory after the fact to a crime that carries life or death can be imprisoned for up to 15 years.⁷

Penalties at a Glance

Felony fines can reach $250,000 per count even when the specific statute does not set an amount.⁸ Defendants also face forfeiture of assets tied to the offense, restitution, and supervised release after prison. When a murder-for-hire ends in death, there is no statute of limitations; federal prosecutors can file charges at any time.⁹

The Hitman Is Usually a Cop

Real murder-for-hire cases rarely involve professional killers. Most involve a person who approaches someone they believe is a hitman and who is actually an undercover officer or a confidential informant. The conversation gets recorded, texts and payment records get collected, and the person who initiated the plot is arrested before anyone is hurt.

The dark web has not changed this pattern, only moved it online. People attempt to hire killers through anonymous sites using cryptocurrency, but the FBI monitors those marketplaces and the “hitmen” there are often scammers or agents. In one 2023 case, a woman who sent cryptocurrency through a Bitcoin ATM to hire a dark-web killer was sentenced to nine years in federal prison.¹⁰ The fact that the intended killing was never going to happen does not matter under § 1958 or § 373. Intent and the act of arranging the deal are what the statutes punish.

Why Entrapment Rarely Works

Defendants often argue entrapment, claiming the government lured them into a crime they would not otherwise have committed. In federal court the defense requires showing both government inducement and that the defendant was not predisposed to commit the crime. Predisposition is the piece that collapses in these cases. If you sought out a hitman, named a target, negotiated a price, and handed over payment, you came to the table ready. Courts have consistently rejected entrapment claims where the defendant initiated contact or kept the plan moving over time.

State Charges Can Stack on Top

Murder-for-hire can be prosecuted at both the federal and state levels. Federal jurisdiction under § 1958 attaches whenever a phone, email, wire transfer, or interstate trip is involved, which captures nearly every real case.¹ States prosecute under their own murder, solicitation, and conspiracy laws, with maximum sentences for solicitation of murder running from 15 years to life depending on the state.

Under the separate sovereigns doctrine, being prosecuted by the federal government and a state for the same conduct does not violate double jeopardy. Prosecutors usually coordinate on who takes the lead, but both can bring charges. Arranging a killing can mean a federal case and a state case running at the same time, from the same text message.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1958 – Use of Interstate Commerce Facilities in the Commission of Murder-for-Hire
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 373 – Solicitation to Commit a Crime of Violence
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1117 – Conspiracy to Murder
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1113 – Attempt to Commit Murder or Manslaughter
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1111 – Murder
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2 – Principals
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3 – Accessory After the Fact
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3571 – Sentence of Fine
9
Congressional Research Service. Statute of Limitation in Federal Criminal Cases: An Overview
10
United States Department of Justice. Woman Sentenced to 9 Years in Dark Web Murder-for-Hire Plot