Hartselle woman arrested for murder for hire
Published 3:56 pm Friday, May 20, 2016
- Sarah Shepard was arrested on May 19 for solicitation for murder
The Hartselle Police Department arrested Sarah Heather Shepard, a 27-year-old female for solicitation of murder on May 19. Shepard lived at 1004 Mitweede St. in Hartselle with her husband Richard and two children. She was booked into the Morgan County Jail and given a $500,000 bond for the offense.
The arrest came after an investigation began by Hartselle Police on April 18. On that date, a concerned citizen contacted the police department with news that Shepard was openly discussing wanting to have her husband killed. Investigators did not have a lot of information at this time, but they brought Shepard in for an interview. Shepard denied these allegations and said she was just joking about the matter.
After the interview, investigators received more information that Shepard was even more determined to find someone to kill her husband. The Hartselle Police Department asked for assistance from the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office and arranged for an undercover officer to make contact with Shepard. The undercover officer had several meetings with Shepard.
On May 19, Shepard gave the undercover office a down payment, and gave him a deadline as to when she wanted her husband killed. She was to pay the balance after the deed was completed. Investigators staged the death of Richard Shepard, with the undercover officer meeting with Shephard to confirm the job had been carried out and told Shepard her husband had been killed.
Shepard was then brought in and confessed to the crime and was booked on the charge of solicitation of murder, which is a Class A felony. She was booked without incident.
According to Hartselle Investigator Justin Barley, Lawrence County was asked to assist due to being familiar with a similar case recently, and HPD also wanted a police officer to be involved.
Shepard’s husband had no idea this was going on. The couple was still living in the same household and had been married for five years. She claims to have not been happy in the marriage.
