A Rhode Island man was arrested Friday after he allegedly attempted to hire a hitman to torture and kill two men before making their bodies “disappear,” according to the Justice Department.
Agustin Vinas, 51, of Providence, was arrested Friday by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents and charged with using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, the Justice Department said in a statement.
Agustin Vinas, a Providence, RI, contractor, was arrested Friday by members of our Rhode Island Safe Streets Task Force and charged in a murder-for-hire plot. It’s alleged he offered to pay $3,500 to have two men killed and for their bodies to “disappear.” https://t.co/VNMhj1DX2K
— FBI Boston (@FBIBoston) May 3, 2021
According to the statement, Vinas met with an acquaintance on April 19 and told the individual about his failed attempts to collect money he was owed by a contractor. Vinas allegedly said the contractor made threats against his family, and he wanted to hire a hitman to kill the contractor and another man. (RELATED: Feds Charge Kentucky Islamic Center Leader With Hiring A Hitman)
The acquaintance told Vinas he would be in touch soon if he knew of someone who’d be interested, and the two met the next day. While under surveillance by federal agents, Vinas allegedly repeated that he wanted the two men killed, and offered to pay $3,000 for the killings and an additional $500 if the hitman can make the bodies “disappear.”
Before killing the two men, however, Vinas allegedly said he’d like them to first be tortured.
Two days later, Vinas met with the acquaintance and “hitman,” who was actually an undercover officer. Vinas identified the two men he’d like the “hitman” to kill’, and provided the contractor’s personal information, including cellphone number and address, according to the Justice Department.
Vinas allegedly told the “hitman” he’d like the contractor killed first, and that the second target would be an easy person to kill. For both killings, Vinas offered $3,000 to the hitman and said “I’m not dying until this guy is dead” after agreeing to pay a deposit.
Vinas and the “hitman” met two more times so he could pay a $100 deposit, and showed the “hitman” two checks totaling $2,700 that could be cashed once the two targets were dead, according to the Justice Department.
When the “hitman” asked if Vinas was certain he wanted him to go through with the killings, Vinas allegedly responded “I am one hundred percent sure.”
One day after meeting with the hitman on April 29, Vinas was arrested.