Allen Gessen, Murder for Hire, California 2022

A federal jury in California has convicted Allen Gessen, a 48-year-old Massachusetts man, of murder for hire after he arranged to pay an undercover FBI agent to murder his former partner, the mother of his young children, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp.

The verdict follows a one-week trial before the Hon. Jacqueline Scott Corley, U.S. District Judge. The evidence at trial established that Gessen, an attorney licensed in New York, was introduced to an undercover FBI agent by a target of a separate FBI investigation into violations of international money laundering.

In the summer of 2022, Gessen met with the undercover FBI agent on two occasions, first in Boca Raton, Florida and then again in New York City, New York. During the meetings, Gessen volunteered details of a years-long dispute with his former partner which had resulted in contentious child custody proceedings.

The evidence at trial established that Gessen’s objectives quickly transformed from bribing an immigration official to deport his former partner to hiring someone to murder her. Gessen initially agreed to pay the undercover FBI agent $100,000 to accomplish the bribery and deportation scheme, but at the end of that same meeting, he resolved to murder his former partner because it was a “cheaper way to get rid of her” and was a more permanent solution.

The trial evidence established that Gessen agreed to pay $50,000 to have the murder completed. Specifically, he agreed to pay a $25,000 deposit and have the remaining $25,000 be due after her murder. During these discussions, Gessen told the undercover FBI agent that he had previously researched murder for hire and paid $10,000 toward accomplishing the task.

Gessen faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. However, any sentence will be imposed only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553. The case is being prosecuted by the Corporate and Securities Fraud Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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