Crime

An Alabama man who owns a plumbing company is accused of trying to hire someone to murder his estranged wife and six adult children amid a contentious divorce, federal prosecutors said.

Mohammad A.H. Mohammad, 63, who owns American Plumbing Service LLC in the Birmingham suburb of Homewood, is charged with use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, according to court documents.

The Justice Department said Mohammad offered an undercover FBI employee posing as a hitman $20,000 to kill his wife and $5,000 for each one of his six children.

"Six kids, and the mom. You pick and choose who you gunna take out, and get paid," he allegedly told the FBI employee, per court documents.

During a conversation with a witness who was asked to find someone to "take care" of his family, Mohammad allegedly said he was willing to "die for self-dignity" and "die for pride." The witness connected Mohammad with the undercover FBI employee, prosecutors said.

Mohammad and his wife were married in March 2021, but the union was filled with violent attacks, according to the criminal complaint. During a Sept. 20 meeting between him and the supposed hitman, Mohammad said that his family had turned against him.

He then allegedly gave instructions on how to commit the slayings.

"Start with one," Mohammad said. "Take your time."

The discord in the marriage was nothing new to local law enforcement. In 2021, Mohammad was arrested for allegedly assaulting one of his daughters. The charges were eventually dismissed.

That same year, his wife obtained three protection from abuse orders from him, saying she feared for her life.

"Mohammad has hurt me and my kids and used weapons against us,’’ she wrote. "Mohammad said he wanted to shoot my daughter between the eyes."

She also said her husband threatened to lock his family in a basement and kill them, court documents state.

"He always threatens me and my children with violence," she said. "He has put his hands on my kids and sent them to the emergency room. He has put a gun and knife against my kids heads and throats. He has shot guns at us."

In April 2022, Mohammad was charged with felony first-degree stalking. Prosecutors accused him of placing GPS tracking devices on cars belonging to his wife and other family members, a violation of their protection orders against him.