Court documents: Fourth Foley woman arrested in connection with contract killing

BALDWIN COUNTY, Alabama (WKRG) – A Foley woman was arrested Friday afternoon in connection with a murder-for-hire plot, according to court documents.

According to FBI Special Agent Jennifer Whitehurst, 36-year-old Rebecca Elizabeth Murphy provided information to the FBI from May 3 to May 6 about her alleged involvement in a murder-for-hire plot.

According to information Whitehurst received from Murphy, three sisters – Sandra Grimes, Judy Owen and Mitzy Smith – tried to hire Murphy to murder Grimes’ son-in-law.

According to Whitehurst’s testimony, Grimes told Murphy that her son-in-law allegedly drugged her daughter, forced her to have sex with others, and assaulted her daughter and grandchildren, prompting Grimes, Owen, and Smith to kill him.

According to Whitehurst’s testimony, the three women paid a man $10,000 to murder their son-in-law, but he fled with the money, so they turned to Murphy.

Grimes took Murphy to Marrero, Louisiana, to show Murphy where her target lived and convince her to kill.

According to Whitehurst’s testimony, the three sisters wanted Murphy to inject the son-in-law with a lethal dose of heroin to make the murder appear to be an overdose because he was allegedly a drug user. Ultimately, Murphy agreed to the plan, but for more money.

Owen and Murphy traveled to Louisiana again to kill the man, but Murphy refused because they wanted her to kill him in daylight outside a local courthouse in front of multiple cameras.

Shortly after the trip, Smith provided Murphy with a box containing a 9 mm Phoenix Arms pistol in Fairhope. Murphy said that’s when she knew the three sisters were serious about the murder-for-hire plot.

According to Whitehurst’s testimony, Murphy traveled to Louisiana again, where she stayed for about a week, but did not put the plan into action.

Ultimately, Murphy did not carry out the plan and did not kill Mina.

Grimes, Owen and Smith were all arrested earlier this month in connection with the plot.

However, Murphy was arrested on Friday, May 24, and charged with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and illegal possession of a firearm. Grimes, Owen and Smith are charged with using interstate commerce facilities to commit murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and conspiracy to transfer a firearm to commit a crime of violence.

All four were charged in federal court on Wednesday.