A Newton New Jersey man who wanted to hire a hitman to murder a Paterson NJ woman is going to federal prison.

The suspect is a 36-year-old resident of Newton, NJ. He met the victim over the Internet while using an online dating website. After going on only two dates with the victim, the suspect reportedly became obsessed with her.

The suspect’s obsession reportedly led him to tell an acquaintance that he planned to hire someone to kidnap the victim and murder her. The acquaintance spoke with law enforcement, which arranged for an undercover officer to pose as a hitman and meet the suspect.

FBI agents later arrested the suspect and charged him with multiple crimes, including attempted kidnapping and murder-for-hire.

The suspect eventually reached a plea agreement with prosecutors on the criminal charges. He recently appeared in U.S. District Court in Newark, where a federal judge sentenced him to 17 years in a federal penitentiary. The judge highlighted the suspect’s prior criminal record, which includes an aggravated assault conviction.

For further information about this case, view the NJ.com article, “Man Gets Jail for Trying to Hire Hitman to Kill Online Crush.”