BURRILLVILLE, R.I. (WPRI) — The registered sex offender accused of abducting a 12-year-old girl nearly three years ago and then attempting to hire a hitman to kill her has pleaded guilty, according to acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.
Chandler Cardente, 30, was convicted Thursday of enticing a minor, committing a felony involving a minor while being required to register as a sex offender and interstate murder for hire.
Cardente is accused of picking the girl up near Burrillville Middle School after dismissal back in December 2021. Police said the girl’s family reported her missing after she didn’t return home from school.
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Investigators later learned Cardente, then 27, had been chatting with the girl online for months while posing as a 17-year-old and the two made plans to meet up…