Former Employee Overhears Boss Plotting to Murder Him

There's a lesson here about butt-dialing...
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 26, 2013 8:37 AM CST
Former Employee Overhears Boss Plotting to Murder Him
   (Shutterstock)

Planning to murder someone? You may want to make sure you don't butt-dial your intended victim while discussing the details of your nefarious plot. Police in Jonesboro, Arkansas, say Larry Barnett, 68, accidentally called one of his former employees last week ... and when the employee heard Barnett discussing the plan to have him killed, he contacted police, KAIT-8 reports. Among the comments Barnett allegedly made to a third man: "I don’t care if you have to burn his house to the ground with him in it. I don’t care what you have to do, make it look like an accident."

Barnett also allegedly gave the third man directions to the intended victim's house; the accidental call went on for an hour and a half. During it, Barnett allegedly offered $5,000 up front and more when the job was complete, revealing that he tried to use someone else first but "they couldn't get the job done." The used car dealership owner also explained his alleged motive, Fox 19 reports: "I owe the little son of a [bleep] a bunch of money and if he's gone, I don't have to pay for it." Police went to the intended victim's home; it had been burglarized and someone had tampered with the gas stove. Barnett was arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. (More weird crimes stories.)

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