Pediatrician charged in murder-for-hire plot in Kentucky

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE/Gray News) - A doctor in Kentucky has been arrested on federal charges for trying to hire someone to kill her ex-husband.

Stephanie Russell, 52, a pediatrician in Louisville, was taken into custody by FBI agents Thursday.

Court records state Russell made contact with a person Sunday that she believed she was hiring to kill her ex-husband. The person Russell had contacted was actually an undercover FBI employee, said the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Kentucky, in a news release.

Russell agreed to pay a total of $7,000 for the killing. She put $3,500 - half of the agreed upon amount - in a drop box outside her medical office Wednesday. She was to pay the remaining $3,500 after it took place.

Russell made an initial court appearance before a U.S. magistrate judge Friday, and she is scheduled to have preliminary and detention hearing Tuesday.

If convicted, Russell could serve up to 10 years in federal prison.