Minn. man murdered wife after searching 'dark web' for hitman, prosecutors say
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stephen Allwine. (Washington County Jail)
A Minnesota man is facing murder charges for allegedly killing his wife in November 2016 after unsuccessfully trying to hire someone else to do it for him.
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According to the criminal complaint, Stephen Allwine, 43, shot and killed 44-year-old Amy Allwine at their Cottage Grove home on November 13, 2016. He allegedly staged her death as a suicide and told police he discovered his wife’s body when he arrived home from picking up the couple’s nine-year-old son from his grandparents’ house.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The autopsy revealed Amy had been drugged and shot in the head.
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An investigation also revealed that in the months before her death, her husband had allegedly searched the “dark web” unsuccessfully for a hitman to kill her.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stephen was charged with second degree murder on Wednesday, with his bail set at $500,000.
Stephen and Amy Allwine met at a small religious college in Texas, and after they married they moved to St. Paul to be closer to her family.
Amy ran a dog training business located right next door to her home, Active Dogs Sports Training. The business shut down shortly after her death.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Investigators believe Stephen made several attempts early last year to hire a hitman on the “dark web” to kill his wife using the username "dogdaygod."
FBI evidence revealed "dogdaygod" sent an email to a "dark web" site called Besa Mafia, where people solicit murders and assaults for hire, to inquire about the cost of a “hit.”
In one exchange, a hitman was supposedly hired to kill Amy while she was traveling to Illinois for a dog training competition. However, Besa Mafia informed dogdaygod that their hitman followed Amy, but did not get a chance to kill her.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dogdaygod and Besa Mafia ultimately decided Amy would be killed at her home and the house would be burned down afterwards, but Besa Mafia continually delayed the hit, investigators said.