Jeal Sutherland, a 58-year-old man from Colonie, was sentenced to 87 months in prison for his role in a murder-for-hire plot. The U.S. Attorney’s Office reported that Sutherland, along with his then-partner, was involved in a scheme targeting the father of a child.
Reports show that Sutherland utilized his cell phone from November 2024 to January 2025 to set the scheme into motion, an act that involved forgiving the debt of his hired accomplice. In a display of premeditation, Sutherland also struck an agreement with an undercover FBI agent, mistakenly believed to be a hog farmer, to utilize a Pennsylvania farm for a grim disposal of the intended victim’s body. Adding to the macabre scenario, the defendant directed the placement of a Canada goose carcass, complete with a threatening note, on the doorstep of the victim’s mother.
Sutherland has been in federal custody since his arrest on January 27, 2025, and the intended victim was not harmed. In addition to his prison sentence, Sutherland was ordered to pay a $15,000 fine and serve a three-year term of supervised release following his imprisonment…