Rudy Adonaldo Chavez, Murder for Hire and Cocaine Distribution, Maryland 2019

A Baltimore man, Rudy Adonaldo Chavez, 31, has been sentenced to 97 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit murder for hire and for distribution of cocaine.

According to court records, on September 6, 2019, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigators arranged a cocaine transaction between a confidential informant and Chavez. The confidential informant purchased 2 ounces of cocaine from Chavez for $2,500.

Three days later, investigators arranged a controlled meeting between the confidential informant and Chavez, who was in the country illegally. During the meeting, Chavez solicited assistance from the confidential informant to murder another individual. As agreed to in the statement of facts, Chavez stated that the intended victim had previously killed two of Chavez’s friends and shot his brother, as a result of an unsuccessful drug deal that took place in Guatemala.

On September 11, 2019, the confidential informant called Chavez on the phone to introduce him to an undercover officer posing as a “hitman”. During the conversation with the hitman, Chavez explained why he wanted to murder the intended victim, that the intended victim fled from Guatemala, illegally entered the United States, and settled in California. He further explained that he had an associate (co-conspirator 1) that was willing to lure the intended victim from California to Baltimore to execute the murder.

Chavez also informed the undercover officer that co-conspirator 1 was aware of the plan to murder the intended victim. Furthermore, Chavez and the undercover officer discussed pricing for the murder. Specifically, Chavez agreed to pay the undercover officer $5,000 “up front” and the remaining $5,000 after the victim was murdered. As a result of the meeting, Chavez and the undercover officer exchanged phone numbers to arrange future meetings regarding the murder for hire.

Law enforcement was able to identify the intended victim with the information provided by Chavez and the co-conspirator and detained the intended victim in California in order to prevent the murder.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron praised the HSI for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Kim Y. Oldham and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Romano, who prosecuted the case.

The case is part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Gang Section’s Operation Relentless Pursuit, an initiative to reduce violent crime in seven pilot cities, including Baltimore. The initiative is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

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