Multi-millionaire hired numerous hitmen in murder-for-hire plots against wife — then killed himself as cops closed in: FBI



A prominent south Florida developer hired numerous hitmen to kill his wife of 32 years, according to the FBI. The multi-millionaire reportedly killed himself just as law enforcement officials were closing in on him.

The FBI said they have recorded phone calls that have incriminated several suspects accused of traumatizing Tatiana Pino — the estranged wife of Sergio Pino.

Investigators believe the motive for the husband's alleged murder-for-hire plot was because his wife rejected his divorce settlement offer of $20 million.

On June 23, a male allegedly pointed a gun at Pino's daughter — 26-year-old Alessandra Pino. The daughter reportedly told a 911 operator, "Oh my gosh. My mom is here. They might have shot her."

Pinecrest Police Department Chief Jason Cohen told Fox News, "[Tatiana] came home from her morning errands, and as she pulled in the driveway, this person pulled up, got out of the car with a firearm. Her daughter actually came out of the house and kind of went face to face with this gunman who clearly wasn't there for the daughter because he, from what I understand, he had the ability to shoot her if he wanted to, and he didn't."

Cohen added, "The guy ended up fleeing because our officers started responding, and he was not able to do what we believe he was there to do that day. We think he was there to likely take her life, Tatiana's life at that point."

A year earlier, someone slammed a rented Home Depot truck into an SUV that Tatiana was driving — in the same driveway where the gun threat took place.

Cohen explained, "She came home from being out, and when she pulled into her driveway, there was a Home Depot flatbed rental truck that was sitting on the street waiting for her. And as she pulled in, it kind of rammed her vehicle and took off."

"It was brought to our attention that this incident here was likely much more than just somebody crashing into her while she's coming home," Cohen stated. "We were made aware of a lot of the background of what had been going on with Mrs. Pino, the accusations of her being poisoned or drugged by potentially her soon-to-be ex-husband … it started to make sense that this was just another piece in that big puzzle."

Tatiana filed for divorce in April 2022.

The murder-for-hire plot to kill Tatiana reportedly began as early as July 2022.

'Now you can’t shake the rap. Your two boys now, or whoever the f*** they are, they can shake the rap.'

U.S. attorney Markenzy Lapointe said hitmen even "obtained fentanyl to assist Sergio Pino in his effort to kill his wife."

"Mrs. Pino had to die before their next divorce proceedings," Lapointe said.

The FBI investigated the case and zeroed in on Sergio Pino.

On July 16, the FBI conducted a search and arrest operation at the Pinos' $8 million waterfront Coral Gables home, but Pino allegedly committed suicide just as law enforcement officials were closing in on him.

The FBI said in a press release that "Sergio Pino was discovered by the FBI inside the residence deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound."

Sam Rabin, Pino’s criminal defense attorney, stated that "Sergio Pino took his own life today. The level of law enforcement activity at his residence was unprecedented and unnecessary, especially since we had offered to surrender him, should that have become necessary. Today’s events mark a very tragic ending to an investigation that we were confident we could successfully defend. There were many rumors and allegations, but what was lacking was evidence."

Pino's alleged suicide ended the criminal case against him, but police have been scrutinizing other suspects.

The U.S. Attorney's Office announced in a July 31 news release that suspects have been charged and indicted for their "respective involvement in a campaign to stalk, torment, and attempt to kill" Tatiana Pino, including Bayron Bennett, 33; Fausto Villar, 42; Avery Bivins, 36; Clementa Johnson, 47; Diori Barnard, 47; Jerren Keith Howard, 38; Michael Jose Dulfo, 42; and Edner Etienne 27. If convicted, the suspects would face a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The FBI said it has recorded phone calls between Villar and Bivins. Both served time in Florida state prison — Bivins for attempted felony murder and armed robbery and Villar for armed robbery.

“It’s going to be good, everything gonna be straight,” Bivins allegedly told Villar.

“Straight. But the f***ing smoke has to clear,” Villar replied. “Everything has to clear, smoke has to clear. So with what you got, try to fend off.”

“It’s going to be good, everything gonna be straight,” Bivins tells him.

“When this b**** gets over and done with, know this — we’re all good, you know what I’m saying?” Villar allegedly told Bivins. “Everything is going to be good.”

After members of Bivins' crew was arrested, Villar became worried about law enforcement cracking down on them.

“Why would you, if you get pinched, they’re going to have, this becomes now a conspiracy,” Villar reportedly told Bivins. “Now you can’t shake the rap. Your two boys now, or whoever the f*** they are, they can shake the rap.”

Villar advised Bivins to delete his social media accounts.

The FBI said Bivins agreed to a deal of $150,000 from Villar to murder Tatiana and had already paid him $75,000. Reportedly, there was a $150,000 bonus in the offing if the act were to have been carried out without law enforcement detection.

Cohen said of the case, "I've been in law enforcement for 27 years, and something like this ... it seemed like something out of a Hollywood movie, but this was unfortunately real life."

Investigators believe the motive for the husband's alleged murder-for-hire plot was because his wife rejected his divorce settlement offer of $20 million. Financial statements revealed in the couple's divorce case showed the pair's 2022 net worth at more than $153 million and as much as $359 million.

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Woman learns her fate after trying to hire 'Online Killers Market' hitmen on dark web to kill wife of man she met on Match.com



A Tennessee woman who tried to hire hitmen to kill the wife of a man she met on a dating website — and who reportedly was jilted by news of his engagement — learned her fate Wednesday.

Melody Sasser, 48, was arrested in June 2023 over allegations of a murder-for-hire plot. As part of the plea agreement filed with the court, Sasser pleaded guilty to using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire.

'I hope you both fall off a cliff and die.'

U.S. District Judge Thomas A. Varlan sentenced Sasser to eight years and four months in federal prison. Following her time behind bars, she will be on supervised release for three years.

Sasser, of Knoxville, also was ordered to pay $5,389 in restitution to the victim.

What's the background?

In 2020, Sasser met David Wallace on Match.com, according to People magazine.

Sasser and Wallace both were from Knoxville and were “hiking friends,” according to the criminal complaint. Wallace said Sasser had helped him on a hike along the Appalachian Trail.

However, in the fall of 2022, Wallace allegedly informed Sasser that he had gotten engaged and was moving with his fiancée to Prattville, Alabama — roughly 330 miles from Knoxville.

Sasser reportedly responded by saying, “I hope you both fall off a cliff and die.”

Not long after, Wallace's wife allegedly told police that her vehicle had been keyed and that she had started receiving threatening phone calls. Sasser used an app to disguise her voice, according to the complaint.

Wallace's wife — identified only by the initials JW — said she suffered trauma from the ordeal. Court docs said she moved out of her home and into a hotel because of the threats, bought a gun, and had her husband search every room of their home to ensure there were no intruders.

In January 2023, Sasser used a dark web-hosted site known as the "Online Killers Market" to hire hitmen to murder Wallace’s wife, according to court documents.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Tennessee said in a press release, "In exchange for the anticipated murder of the victim, Sasser used the internet to transmit nearly $10,000 in cryptocurrency to the would-be assassins."

Sasser also requested that the murder appear “to seem random or accident[al]" or to "plant drugs" on the victim, according to the release. Sasser reportedly stressed that she did "not want a long investigation."

Sasser became impatient two months after she paid for the assassination attempt.

“I have waited for 2 months and 11 days and the job is not completed. 2 weeks ago you said it was been worked on and would be done in a week. The job is still not done. Does it need to be assigned to someone else? Will it be done? What is the delay? When will it be done?” Sasser reportedly wrote in a message to the administrator of the online assassin website.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office release stated, “In her communications with the site, Sasser provided photographs and location information of the victim.”

The New York Post reported that Sasser tracked the couple’s locations using an exercise app called Strava that allows users to upload the mileage and routes of their past runs.

Ultimately, the murder-for-hire scheme was unsuccessful.

Sasser was arrested following an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations Knoxville and Homeland Security Investigations Birmingham with the assistance of the Knoxville Police Department and the Prattville Police Department in Alabama.

During a search of her home, law enforcement uncovered a journal listing several other hitman websites, a handwritten account of communications with the Online Killers Market, and a stack of U.S. currency with a note attached highlighting a Bitcoin address.

Federal prosecutor Anne-Marie Svolto told the judge during the sentencing hearing that the journal “was a hidden rage that she kept secret for months," WBIR-TV reported.

Sasser's attorney, Jeff Whitt, told the judge that his client suffered a "breakdown of massive proportion," and she was deeply remorseful for her actions.

"She wants [the victim] to be able to move on with her life," Whitt said.

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Suspected would-be assassin offered a bounty on Trump's head, prosecutors reveal



Federal prosecutors revealed in a Monday filing that Ryan Routh, the 58-year-old Democratic donor suspected of trying to assassinate Kamala Harris' opponent on Sept. 15, previously offered an international bounty on President Donald Trump's head and had foreknowledge of Trump's whereabouts.

According to the filing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, a civilian witness approached law enforcement days after Routh's Sept. 15 arrest, indicating the suspected would-be assassin had dropped off a box at his residence several months prior.

'It is up to you now to finish the job.'

Upon learning of the assassination attempt, the witness, who is unnamed in the filing, apparently opened the box. There, he reportedly found ammunition, a metal pipe, building materials, four phones, and a number of letters, including one addressed to "The World."

Routh's appeal to murderers abroad, which largely reads like Harris campaign literature, allegedly states:

Dear World, This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job. Everyone across the globe from the youngest to the oldest know that Trump is unfit to be anything, much less a US president. U.S. presidents must at bare minimum embody the moral fabric that is America and be kind, caring and selfless and always stand for humanity.

While the Department of Justice disclosed the first page of the letter, the remainder was not shared. However, the filing indicated that the letter does at one point state, "He [the former President] ended relations with Iran like a child and now the Middle East has unraveled."

Donald Trump Jr. asked on X, "WTF!? Why is Kamala's DOJ publicizing Ryan Wesley Routh putting a bounty on my dad's head???"

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) suggested, "The DOJ, which is trying to put Trump in prison, is now offering a bounty on Trump's head by releasing this. Why else would they release this?"

Routh's letter to killers abroad echoes what he wrote in his self-published 2023 book, "Ukraine's Unwinnable War."

In the book, Routh — who made around 20 small donations to Democrats through ActBlue between 2019 and 2020 and who the Department of Homeland Security declined to investigate despite previous complaints — apologized to Iranians for Trump dismantling the nuclear deal and noted, "You are free to assassinate Trump as well as me for that error in judgment."

Routh added, "No one here in the US seems to have the balls to put natural selection to work or even unnatural selection."

Prosecutors indicated that the box Routh dropped off with the witness also contained a handwritten list of dates in August, September, and October and corresponding venues indicating where Trump had appeared or was anticipated to show up.

It's presently unclear whether the dates and locations were all public knowledge. However, acting USSS Director Ronald Rowe told reporters last week that Trump "wasn't supposed to have gone there in the first place," referencing his Sept. 15 visit to the golf course.

There was also a notebook in the box filled with names and phone numbers linked to Ukraine along with "discussions about how to join combat on behalf of Ukraine."

Blaze News previously reported that Routh fancied himself an international recruiter for Ukrainian forces and ran the website "Fight for Ukraine." Although Ukraine's foreign legion reportedly figured him for a charlatan, he was featured in multiple mainstream reports about international recruitment.

In addition to attempting to help Afghan militants qualify to fight against Russia in Ukraine, Routh was apparently a cheerleader for the Ukrainian brigade associated with neo-Nazis since its inception. He appears at the 1:50-minute mark in a 2022 video of a Ukrainian demonstration in support of the Azov Brigade.

The Azov Brigade said in a statement last week that it "has no connection" to Routh.

The court filing noted further that the FBI obtained cell site records for two of the phones found in the vehicle Routh reportedly used to flee the scene of the alleged assassination attempt.

The records indicated that Routh traveled from Greensboro, North Carolina, to West Palm Beach on Aug. 14.

Between Aug. 18 and Sept. 15, Routh's phone allegedly accessed cell towers near Trump's golf course and Mar-a-Lago residence on numerous occasions.

Extra to revealing Routh's apparent willingness to outsource Trump's assassination to foreign killers and his apparent foreknowledge of Trump's whereabouts, prosecutors highlighted ahead of Routh's detention hearing Monday that on Dec. 20, 2002, the Ukraine-war obsessive was convicted in North Carolina for possession of a weapon of mass destruction — a "binary explosive device" — as well as in 2010 for multiple counts of possession of stolen goods.

Blaze News previously reported that when Routh appeared in court on Dec. 18, 2002, his bond amount was increased to $100,000, and he was ordered released Dec. 18 by Superior Court Judge Peter M. McHugh. Days later, Routh entered a plea agreement that led to dismissal of the explosives charge, and his bond was reduced to $10,000.

Rather than serve up to 19 months in prison, Routh was ultimately ordered to serve 60 months of probation and to pay a $225 fine.

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Sen. Blumenthal makes telling admission about forthcoming report on attempted Trump assassination



Following a closed-door meeting Thursday with acting U.S. Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe, Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) provided a chilling indication that the truth about the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump will leave the American public "shocked, astonished, and appalled."

Days after Trump was shot in Pennsylvania by an ActBlue donor who allegedly shared pro-Biden content online, U.S. Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) announced that the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee was launching a bipartisan investigation into the security failures that led to bloodletting that occurred on July 13.

In the months since, members of the committee have conducted transcribed interviews with officials linked to the Butler rally.

Committee member Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) indicated this week, "There are more questions than answers at this point in our bipartisan Senate investigation of July 13th. We will continue to press the Secret Service and FBI for witnesses and documents."

'We are going to absolutely insist on the truth.'

Johnson noted further that the committee will issue a preliminary report in the "very near future."

Rowe gave members of both the House and Senate an update Thursday, which appears to have vexed some lawmakers.

Johnson referenced "some frustration that was voiced, I think, with Acting Director Rowe," reported the New York Post.

The briefing also appears to have left Blumenthal with the impression that the committee's forthcoming report will create serious waves. The Connecticut Democrat said that Americans will be shocked by what the report will say about "the failures of the Secret Service in this assassination attempt of a former president."

"But I think they also ought to be appalled and astonished by the failure of the Department of Homeland Security to be more forthcoming, to be as candid and frank as it should be to them in terms of providing information," added Blumenthal. "We are going to absolutely insist on the truth and the whole truth in documents and testimony."

When pressed about what he learned at the closed-door meeting, Blumenthal would not go into specifics. However, he reiterated that the report "will absolutely shock the American people — it should — about the lapses and lags in the protection of his supporters that day and the breakdown of communication."

Blaze News investigative reporter Steve Baker, who has dug deep into what happened July 13 along with reporter Joe Hanneman, cast doubt on whether the committee report will be as explosive as Blumenthal has suggested.

"Honestly, beyond the 'shock' of unprecedented incompetence by the USSS, I don't know what else they will have to show. Maybe the 'insinuation' of 'deliberate incompetence'?" said Baker. "Beyond that insinuation, I seriously doubt they will provide evidence of a conspiracy behind the assassination attempt."

"Blaze News' own expert sources are convinced there are specific signs of professional 'grooming' behind the actions of Thomas Crooks, but Crooks' groomers are part of a very small group. Likely no more than three operatives. No more than five people 'in the know,'" continued Baker. "These are the kind of operatives who will never talk. They themselves will likely believe they were doing the business of 'God and Country' in saving us from the 'democracy-destroying authoritarianism' of a second Trump administration."

As for reports out of Congress, Baker suggested that "we will only ever hear more statements and more questions about the gross 'failures' and 'incompetencies.' It will die there, short of some miraculous revelation or the emergence of an unlikely whistleblower from within our intelligence community."

The report may prove toothless; however, more officials involved in the July 13 Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, may soon be out of work.

The Post noted that when asked whether more people should resign, Blumenthal replied, "Unquestionably and indisputably, there needs to be more accountability. People need to be held responsible."

"Without accountability, this kind of failure and lapse will happen again because there needs to be that sense that someone is the point person," added the Connecticut Democrat.

Sen. Paul told reporters after the briefing, "I think the people in charge of security that day shouldn't be doing it again."

Kimberly Cheatle resigned in disgrace as Secret Service director, despite initially signaling she intended to remain in the role, and a handful of agents were reportedly put on leave weeks later.

USSS Assistant Director Michael Plati is also stepping down.

A spokesman for Plati told Fox News this week, "Mike has been discussing this for more than a year. He's retiring on the date of his 27-year anniversary working for the Secret Service. He approached Acting Director [Ronald] Rowe about his retirement last month, before the DNC. He wasn't asked to retire or resign, and anyone saying otherwise is lying."

The Secret Service similarly suggested Plati "was not asked to resign or retire by anyone."

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Would-be Trump assassin searched internet about JFK killer Lee Harvey Oswald, FBI director says



The Pennsylvania man who attempted to kill former President Donald J. Trump at an election rally July 13 used a laptop computer to search the internet for information on “how far away was Oswald from Kennedy?” FBI Director Christopher Wray told a U.S. House committee on July 24.

Wray told the House Judiciary Committee that would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, generally had a high level of interest in public figures but turned his attention in earnest to Trump around July 6.

Wray’s statement about the Google search done on a laptop associated with Crooks was among the biggest disclosures to date about the shooting of Trump at the Butler Farm Show Inc. fairgrounds in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Crooks’ alleged search was a reference to gunman Lee Harvey Oswald and the shots he fired from the Texas School Book Depository at President John F. Kennedy as Kennedy’s motorcade rode through Dealey Plaza in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Kennedy died from wounds suffered in the shooting.

Wray also told the committee that Crooks was flying a drone in the area of the Trump rally more than two hours before the shooting. A drone recovered from Crooks’ vehicle flew in an area approximately 200 yards from the Trump speaking stage for 11 minutes, starting around 3:50 p.m., Wray said.

Crooks appeared to be live streaming video from the drone, Wray said, but he did not say whether anyone was watching the video stream.

No still images or video from July 13 were recovered from the drone, he said. The FBI was able to “re-engineer” the drone’s flight path, Wray said.

To date, the FBI has not found "any evidence" of coconspirators or others who might have assisted Crooks in his plan to attack the former president and his supporters, Wray said.

Wray disclosed that the FBI recovered three “relatively crude” explosive devices: two from Crooks’ vehicle and one from the Crooks family residence.

A transceiver recovered from under Crooks’ body on the roof of Building 6 at the American Glass Research complex north of the fairgrounds likely could not have detonated the devices found in Crooks’ auto, Wray said.

The FBI has recovered a roughly five-foot ladder that Crooks purchased at Home Depot the morning of the shooting, Wray said. The ladder was not found on site or in Crooks' vehicle, Wray said.

This is a developing story that will be updated as news unfolds.

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Ronald Reagan's attempted assassin, John Hinckley, announced his first live music performance



The man who attempted to assassinate Ronald Reagan in 1981 is starting a career as a professional musician.

The would-be assassin-turned-song writer announced on Twitter that he has scheduled a performance in New York City for this upcoming summer, the New York Post reported.

Big news!! I will be performing on July 8 at the Market Hotel in Brooklyn, NY. Get your tickets while you can.
— John Hinckley (@John Hinckley) 1649448085

The show was confirmed in an Instagram post by the venue.

Tickets can be purchased online for $20 a piece.

Scenic Presents — a Brooklyn-based musical acts promotion company — also confirmed the show via Twitter.

The company said, “Excited to announce the first show in NYC of @JohnHinckley20 at @markethotelnyc feat. Special guests, July 8th.”

Hinckley said that he is “very excited about his upcoming show.”

I\u2019m very excited about my upcoming show. Ticket sales are good. July 8, Market Hotel in Brooklyn NY.pic.twitter.com/2RIH58xw75
— John Hinckley (@John Hinckley) 1649524266

People generally appeared unfazed, if not outright enthusiastic, about Hinckley’s announcement. Many people responded to him by asking for him to book shows in other cities across the country and asked whether they could purchase merchandise from the gunman-turned-guitarist.

In 2021, Hinckley won a court battle that enabled him to proceed with publishing his music online and pursue a career as a songwriter.

In December 2020, Hinckley created an account on YouTube to try and launch his music career. At the time of writing, his account has 26,200 subscribers and 37 videos. In one video, Hinckley announced his plans to launch an independent record label called Emporia Records.

Last September, Hinckley was “unconditionally released” after reaching an agreement with federal prosecutors that would lift the current restrictions currently on him if he could remain mentally stable, the New York Post reported.

After shooting Ronald Reagan, Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Hinckley, now 66-years-old is currently living alone after living in his mother’s home in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is required to attend individual and group therapy sessions in addition to a slew of doctors having constant oversight over his psychiatric medication.

He is federally barred from owning a firearm and is not legally permitted to contact Reagan’s descendants or actress Jodie Foster with whom Hinckley was obsessed at the time of the shooting.

A violence risk assessment carried out by the Washington Department of Behavioral Health in 2020 found that Hinckley no longer posed a threat.

A regional NBC affiliate in Washington, D.C., reported that in response to this, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute said, “Contrary to the judge’s decision, we believe John Hinckley is still a threat to others, and we strongly oppose his release. Our hope is that the Justice Department will file a motion with the court leading to a reversal of this decision.”