Pediatrician Tried Hiring Hitman To Kill Ex-Husband, Agreed To Pay $7,000: Prosecutors

A 52-year-old doctor in Kentucky is accused of hiring a hitman to kill her ex-husband, authorities said.

On Sunday, Stephanie Russell, of Louisville, contacted someone she allegedly thought she was hiring to murder her ex-husband, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Kentucky. The person she contacted was actually an FBI undercover employee (UCE).

Russell agreed to pay the undercover FBI agent $7,000 to murder her former spouse, prosecutors alleged.

On Wednesday, Russell left $3,500 in cash in a drop box outside of her medical office to settle half of the bill, according to authorities.

She allegedly told the agent that she would pay him the other half once the hit was completed.

Russell was arrested by the FBI Thursday and made her first court appearance the following day. She was booked into the Oldham County Detention Center, WDRB reported.

She was charged with using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, where there is no parole.

Russell works as a pediatrician at KidzLife Pediatrics in Prospect, Kentucky's affluent Norton Commons neighborhood. A "closed" sign was posted on the door of the hospital Friday morning, according to WDRB.

Russell’s ex-husband, whose name has not been disclosed, filed for divorce in 2018, and it was finalized in 2020, court records said. The former couple was involved in an ongoing custody dispute before she was arrested this week, according to the report.

Authorities have not announced a possible motive for the alleged murder-for-hire.

"While we don't have any U.S. statistics, research by the Australian Institute of Criminality estimated that approximately 2-4% of their murders are for hire," Dr. Joni E. Johnston stated. "Almost 20% of the 'successful contracts'—the target died—were motivated by a romantic relationship gone wrong; 16% were financially motivated."

People in the area were shocked by Russell's arrest, WHAS 11 reported. Lance Dooley, a resident of Norton Commons, has been bringing his two daughters for checkups to Russell since they were born.

"She's been their primary care provider for six years, so it's freaky," Dooley told WHAS.

Dooley was picking up his kids' medical records because he found a new pediatrician after hearing about Russell's arrest.

"Money drop-offs were happening right around the corner," he said. "That freaks us out. It's one of those things you don't expect."

The FBI and the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department's investigation into the case is ongoing.