murder for hire plots caught on camera. >> you know, we're talking about murder here. >> i know we are. >> in north carolina, a preschool teacher asks a stranger to throw her husband into a power line. >> i know i'm a cold-hearted bitch. >> if you listen to her story, preschool teacher, married, kids. she's everyone's next door neighbor. >> and in new york, a businessman tries using murder to end his marriage. >> the only thing that i could walk away saying about him is he's a jerk and wanted his wife

dead. >> now go deep inside cases few could imagine. if they haven't been caught on camera. well, let me tell you what i'm thinking about doing and tell me if you're comfortable with. just catching him sometimes in the country and shoot him with a high powered rifle. >> december 7th, 1992. 39-year-old phyllis kroul is captured on a police surveillance tape meeting with a stranger who promises to kill her husband.

>> i'm thinking about shooting, making it look like a hunting accident. >> i know there are undercover roles that are very complex and difficult to do. >> c.j. highman is the man seen in the surveillance video. at the time he's a special agent with the bureau of tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. or atf. >> you never want to ask a question that takes people back and say why are you asking me that question? that sounds like a police officer. >> on this particular day, the woman seated by highman in a kmart parking lot in charlotte, north carolina, is telling him more than he expects to hear. >> you thought this through? >> seriously thought this through. >> you know we're talking about murder here. >> i know. i know i'm a cold-hearted bitch, but life's life. >> in late 1992, phyllis and her husband have been married two

years and live just outside the city in the town of matthews where phyllis works for the preschool at the first baptist church. >> if you listen to her story, preschool teacher, married, kids. she's everyone's next door neighbor. >> phyllis' 40-year-old husband jimimy comes into the marriage with a job at the telephone company and with a life insurance policy. >> he was a hard working guy who other than the fact that she wanted the insurance money and wanted to be away from him, had done nothing wrong. >> in '92, i was a detective with the violent crimes task force. >> darryl price, a detective sergeant with the charlotte mecklenburg police department first learns about the plot from a street source. kroul's 22-year-old daughter.

>> she was very young, and i felt very sorry for her in a lot of ways. because she didn't have a lot of parental guidance. >> in the course of sult vating his source, detective price even met the young woman's mother. phyllis kroul. then in november 1992, the daughter says she's making inquiries about hiring a hit man. >> she didn't want to see her mother murder her stepfather or go to prison. >> he contacts the atf about helping the police set up a sting. >> there was just nothing. there was no technology. so we utilized the atf technology which at that time was top of the line, topnotch. >> the daughter gives her mother

a phone number for c.j. highman. >> today if imp about to hire a hit person, you can go online. you can run that person. you can see what have they been arrested for. if you've been in prison for murder, chances are you've done it before, you'll do it again. in 1992, you had to take people at their word. there was not access to the internet. you would literally have to walk into a courthouse and look up c.j.'s information and what a trail you're leaving then. >> detective highman is given deliberate information about his target. >> sometimes when you're walking into an undercover job such as a murder for hire, if you know too much, you can mess up a lot easier than if you don't know too much. so basically what i would do is just give c.j. some background on phyllis. and let him take it from there. >> on december 3rd, the two have their first meeting in the

parking lot of the charlotte eastland mall. while the team positions itself nearby. >> the first meeting was we'll see if she's really serious about this or if this has been blown out of proportion. >> initially, agents restrict their eavesdropping to audio surveillance. >> c.j. wore an old style wire. it's got wires and batteries in it. the reception's poor at times. you may or may not be able to record. you may or may not hear it clearly. >> okay, guys. i'm pulling in the mall now. >> i was trying to give those verbal cues over the radio to people in surveillance to know where i was and what i was doing. >> all right. i see what i think is the van over there. i'm going to go on over there. >> she said the only thing i'm concerned about is being here in this plot. she just was scared she might run into somebody she might know

there. >> tell me what you thought about this. >> off and on for a year. trying to find someone to do it without raising suspicions. >> saying he worked in rural places. it would be easy to have access to carry out the murder. >> it don't really matter if it's an accident. if you throw him into a power line. that's fine. >> what we didn't really realize was that the insurance policy had a double on it where if he died in an accident, the insurance was double. that's why she wanted him murdered in a particular way. >> though phyllis also considers framing someone else for the crime. particularly her husband's ex-wife. >> i can give you her address if you want to shoot him and plant the gun at her house, point it at her, good to go. >> if there were a such thing as

a perfect murder, it's a murder where someone else goes to prison for your crime. and by making it appear that his ex-wife is the doer, then you're off the hook completely. >> phyllis tells the undercover she's the sole beneficiary of her husband's insurance policy and expects to receive $200,000 after the murder. >> what are you willing to pay on this? >> i was going to leave that up to you. i'd be willing to go up to $100,000. that'd be half and half. >> i'll do it for that. >> yeah. she made a pretty handsome offer. that kind of shocked us. we were thinking the offer was going to be more in the $5,000 and $10,000 range which i think is quite adequate even today's standards to have someone killed. but that figure really threw us off. >> what you got for collateral? >> collateral? >> any jewelry?

anything like that? >> she did seem surprised that i said i was going to need something up front. she made some comment about hey i got $30 in my wallet right now. >> she already said this money's coming through insurance. that will take a little while. well, not many hit men are going to go for that. they're not going to say pay me when the insurance covers. >> you sure you want to do it? >> i'm positive i want to do it. >> we realized we actually did have a crime going on. set down with the prosecutors and say this is what we have. at that point it was decided that what we really need a little bit more, we really need video and audio of this whole exchange. >> four days later, investigators will set up a second meeting in another parking lot focusing their lens on phyllis as she expands her plan. >> i've been practicing getting all bent out of shape and

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charlotte, north carolina. december 7th, 1992. >> if something comes up and it can't happen before christmas, i understand. >> phyllis crowell, a teacher in the town of matthews talks to an undercover agent about a timeline for killing her husband jimmy. >> i think we're both polite with each other. blame it on southern culture. i'm a good ole southern boy. >> c.j. highman, the atf agent, is posing as the hit man. >> you got two doors o in the back. >> that's the way you're brought

up. whether you're talking about hey, can you fix me roof or can you kill my husband, it's just natural. >> we knew that if she did "a," "b," "c," and "d," we were going to make the arrest that day. >> darryl price is part of the joint task force with the atf. monitoring the meeting from other parts of the shopping center. >> we had a pickup truck marked with a camper shell on the back. and there were several of us in the back with an old style vhs camera. we didn't have hollywood technology. it was just old school using what you had to make the best of a tough situation. >> as phyllis crowell waits in her van, highman positions the undercover vehicle in the camera's sight line. >> contact with phyllis crowell

on the kmart supercenter parking lot. >> he pulled up so we could see the entire front of his vehicle. >> good afternoon. >> hey there. how you doing? >> tired. >> i was calm, but i think i was a little thrown back when she was so forward. just like talking to your next door neighbor. just talking to a casual acquaintance. it was just a straightforward conversation. >> i've thought about it seriously. still have no inhibitions about it at all. >> you always deal with the issues in cases where you're working undercover of entrapment. is this really what you want to do? at that point in time i had no doubt she was serious. >> but authorities need to take action to prove her intentions. >> if you and i were sitting at

a bar talking and you say i want you to kill my wife. is that a violation of the law? no, it's not. because you're probably just talking. they actually have to take that first step. >> at the prosecutor's discussion, highman has asked for a piece of jewelry as a down payment. >> what do you think it's worth? >> two grand. >> she hands me the diamond bracelet. trying to think what would i really do if i was doing this? i don't know jewelry. i don't know if it's the real thing or if it's costume jewelry. i felt like i should at least ask. >> is that real? >> yes. >> i'ded be disappointed if you didn't get it checked. >> i was surprised almost like she bolstered me saying you're doing a good job. >> how many people know? >> my son, my daughter. >> how much does your son know?

>> not enough to casual statements like get me a gun and i'll get rid of him. >> you're just sitting there thinking, okay, how weird would it be if one of my parents came to me and my siblings and said hey i want to kill the other parent. and it just sounded like day-to-day, hey, i'm thinking about renting a movie. i'm thinking about killing your dad. >> well, let me tell you what i'm thinking about doing and you tell me if you feel comfortable with it. just catching him sometime when he's out in the country and shoot him with a high-powered rifle. make it look like a hunting accident. >> i think that was the first thing c.j. threw out because it would have been the simplest or easiest. she wanted other things. she wanted to appear as an on-duty work accident for him that would have increased the insurance money.

>> among her suggestions, sneaking up on her husband while he's alone in the country working for the telephone company and pushing him onto a live power line. >> taking care of him? >> of course. gave him tylenol and everything before he went to work this morning. >> she grins when she talks about taking care of him and giving him tylenol. i think at one point i did look at her and looked a little flabbergasted she was saying all this. >> we have a school play thursday and a meeting friday. >> what about wednesday afternoon? >> wednesday afternoon, i can be at my father-in-law's. no problem. >> his father? >> yeah. >> i'd say that's a pretty air-tight alibi, huh? >> uh-huh. >> she wanted to know when it was going to happen so she could be with the in-laws when the

news came in. >> i've been practicing getting all bent out of shape and everything. >> she says i can play the role of a bereaved widow for three months or so. then i'll start slowly coming out of my shell and be ready to get back into society. >> you know we're talking about murder here. >> i know wither. i know i'm a cold-hearted bitch, but life's life. >> i do remember when that was said. all of us in the truck looked at each other like, wow. >> there's a point where i kind of look away and chuckle. and again, it wasn't a funny situation. but it was all kind of just flooring me she was so matter of fact about all this that she was saying. >> but phyllis crowell is about to realize there are serioabout repercussions. >> she news what was up. ♪

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1992. >> preschool teacher phyllis crowell sits in a kmart parking lot describing her husband jimmy. >> she was willing to pay me $100,000 to kill her husband. >> c.j. highman is posing as the hit man. >> you want this done soon? >> soon. >> we have role players in training. and for a little while i felt i was sitting across from a role player. just trying to see if they could make me react or crack up or laugh. >> how about your daughter, how is she going to handle it? >> she'll handle it real well. >> she thought her daughter was really on board with it. and her daughter wasn't on board with it. >> in fact, it's phyllis' daughter who first tells charlotte mecklenburg police

department officer darryl price about the plot. he's also met her mother. >> i think she kind of saw herself as being this mata shz hari type that would meet with a hit man and do these dastardly deeds. >> i'm good. >> still phyllis continues to exude confidence about receiving a hefty insurance payment after the crime. and writing the hit man a check. >> i want to get four $25,000 checks. >> i'd rather not have a check. >> but i could cash them easier too. >> once you do that, you'll have cash for me. >> if i'm really a hit man, am i going to want a check? no. you know, it's traceable. it comes back, it's easy for

police to follow. i won't cash. >> i'm going to try to do it this week. >> sounds good. >> he'll be dead as good as probably thursday afternoon. >> all right. >> give me about three weeks afterwards and i'll call you. don't screw it up. >> i will not screw it up. >> all right. >> he did everything a real hit man would have done. >> i wanted to make sure i got all the things the prosecutor needed. if you could get her to say his full name so there's no question about well, i was talking about somebody else. you misunderstood me or anything else. >> what's his full name is james fuller ci eer crowell. >> she gives his full name. it was a relief hey she checked off everything she asked me to get. >> it'll be done. >> okay. appreciate it.

>> she got out of the car, it was as if she just walked out of a mcdonald's and just finished a big mac and said thanks i appreciate it. >> there's no doubt in my mind that when phyllis crowell got out of the car that day, she thought her husband was going to be dead that week. >> the undercover vehicle watches her walk towards the department store. then signals the rest of the task force. >> i'd say go ahead and take her. >> i'm already preplanning getting to her before she gets to the door of the kmart. >> we're not talking about a huge tactical type takedown. there were several agents as she's walking up to the entrance of the store, they just walked up and identified themselves and basically arrested her on the scene. >> i know as soon as she saw me walk up knowing what i do for a living, she knew what was up. >> authorities charge phyllis

with solicitation to commit murder. a group of officers are now dispatched to deliver the news to her husband jimmy. >> i was one of the ones that informed the husband. he did not believe us. he didn't want to believe us. he thought that we had set the whole thing up, that we had coerced her into saying all the things that were said. >> if it's an accident, if you throw him into a power line, that's fine. >> jimmy is so incredulous, he bonds out his wife for $30,000. while prosecutors begin examining the evidence in the case. >> you know we're talking about murder here. >> i know we are. i know i'm a cold-hearted bitch, but life's life. >> our defense attorney probably looked at that tape and probably told her how will i defend this? how can i defend you sitting there with an undercover atf agent saying you want to throw your husband into a high powered line and you know you're a

cold-hearted bitch and you know we're talking about murder. i don't know of a defense attorney in the country that could have defended that. >> instead of going to trial, phyllis crowell pleads guilty to solicitation to commit murder. in august 1993, she is sentenced to six years in prison. by the time she emerges less than four years later, she's estranged from both her husband and daughter. >> to this day i never talked to her. never had contact with her. >> since her release, phyllis crowell has been convicted of a number of misdemeanors. including writing worthless checks. she did not respond to msnbc's interview request. >> you take care of him? >> of course. gave him tylenol and everything before he headed to work this morning. >> watching the video, i get to critique myself. i don't know that i've changed a whole lot. and again, not so much that i did such a great job but so much of it she did herself.

>> i've been practicing getting all bent out of shape and everything. >> sometimes the art is shutting up and letting the bad guy talk. >> still have no inhibitions about it at all. coming up -- >> very anxious. >> in long island, new york, a businessman is so eager to end his arranged marriage, he's ready to bring a hit man to his house. >> he was very excited when i said i'm going to twist a knife in her heart. ♪ [ male announcer ] the distances aren't getting shorter. ♪ the trucks are going farther. the 2013 ram 1500 with best-in-class fuel economy. engineered to move heaven and earth. guts. glory. ram. the new ram 1500. motor trend's 2013 truck of the year.

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here's what's happening. oklahoma is still trying to recover from friday's outbreak of tornadoes which brought heavy wind, rain, and hail. seven are still missing and authorities are not holding out hope of finding them alive. three of those killed were a storm chasing team who got caught in a tornado while in their truck.

outside l.a., 3,000 people have been forced to leave their homes because of a wildfire. at least five homes burned so far. now back to "the hit man tapes". let me tell you, jay, g, whatever your name is. if you can do this, this will be the biggest score you ever made. >> december 2006. 31-year-old sam paul arrives for a meeting to plan the murder of his wife. >> i want to tick her in the heart. because that way she can't live. >> but sanstosh has brought along an unexpected guest.

his 3 1/2-year-old son. >> there's a disconnect. he's talking about leaving his poor child who's in the car with him without a mother. the coldness of it is just mind boggling. >> i'll give you guys $200. two bills. >> she was flashy. he kept trying to prove he has the money because as a hit man i want to get paid. >> gladston clark is posing for the hire. >> putting me down as a person i'm from the street. i'm better than you. i drive an expensive car. so if i was a true hit man, probably would have had problems. >> you're not dealing with a guy who lives in a basement. >> i'm living the dream. >> that's the kind of lifestyle i live. i'm not no broke [ bleep ]. >> she was insulting me, making friends with me. he was all over the place. the only thing i could walk away

about him saying is he's a jerk and he wanted his wife dead. >> here's the photo santosh provides of his wife tina. an accountant at a long island media company. >> they were actually an arranged marriage when they were both teenagers as is very common in the indian culture. their families were very close. culturally they were identical. >> his bank accounts did show a good amount of money. he did have a mortgage company at the time. they were buying and selling houses. it was '06 so there was a lot of properties to be bought up and resold pretty quickly. >> but apparently santosh paul wants more and says his goal is disposing his wife and collecting on a million-dollar insurance policy. >> he had an encounter with someone who introduced him to the concept of voodoo and took steps to bury certain things in

his back yard that was supposed to help lead to his wife's death. it never went anywhere. and he didn't leave it at that. he went to try to find someone else who could kill his wife. >> apparently he paid a person $2,000 to have him kill his wife and that person scammed him for his money. >> the first guys he hired said they were going to spray her with special spray that was going to kill her. i never heard of any such spray. and if you want somebody dead, you're going to have to kill them. >> santosh continues making inquiries. >> somebody knew i was a police officer when i was getting my hair cut said somebody approached them about killing their wife. so i called my supervisor and he told me to set up a meeting. >> on december 18th, 2006, the undercover arranges to meet

santosh in this mcdonald's parking lot on hempstead turnpike while the support team watches from nearby. >> it's like doing a hollywood set. but you only get one take at this. you only get one shot. >> detective lieutenant gregory detwiler oversees the sting. >> the undercover is really like an actor. he's the guy that's got to sell this. there are street lamps that mcdonald's has at nighttime. and it was enough to illuminate the area. i was in a van where we were shooting the video from across the street. >> the informant is told to make the introductions then let the undercover do most of the talking. >> what's up? >> where the [ bleep ] you been? >> it was prearranged the detective was going to sit in the back seat. that gives him a little bit more control. the two of them are in the front. he has a better handle of what would be going on with the two of them.

>> i want her shot. >> no. >> you want her run over? >> no. >> look like a robbery? >> no. >> a car accident? >> he believed a car accident would be less suspicious than a gun shot. it would be clean and no questions would be asked of him or anybody else. >> she could be a vegetable in the hospital for the next ten years. people go into a freaking coma. you know what i mean? have you ever done this before and clean? i don't mean to be nosy in your business. but i need to protect myself. >> i have a couple of bodies. >> we didn't prep him. you knew that would be the right vernacular to use. >> a recurring topic. the ability to subsidize the hit. >> it's not like i live in a basement with my parents. i drive a $90,000 car.

i have the income to back it up. what else can i show you? you want my tax return? >> no. >> that is the world that santosh paul lives in. that's how you prove your worth. i have to know you can afford this. >> from the beginning, santosh has been arrogant but fidgety. then 30 minutes into the meeting he turns paranoid. >> you're not a cop are you? >> no. >> are you wearing a wire under your shirt? >> no wire here. >> for some reason paul said well how do i know you're not wearing a wire. let's step out. >> he stepped out of the car, and i lifted my shirt. he saw no wire. the wire was on my person, we don't like to disclose what we use or what it looks like or

anything like that. >> one of our very experienced detectives in the d.a. squad said you can't have your gun in your holster. because bad guys don't keep their guns in these shiny leather holsters. so you take i want out and stick it in the front of your pants like a bad guy would. when he picks his shirt up, that's what the defendant sees. >> the undercover has temporarily placated the suspect. whose behavior will remain erratic and unpredictable. >> he gets out of the car because he has to relieve himself. then his son gets out of the car. it was bizarre when i saw that. have a good night. here you go. you, too. i'm going to dream about that steak. i'm going to dream about that tiramisu. what a night, huh? but, um, can the test drive be over now? head back to the dealership? oh, yeah. [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. [ wife ] sorry. [ male announcer ] but we still need your signature.

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long island, new york. december 2006. >> how quick can you get this done? >> as a hidden camera records him in a mcdonald's parking lot, 31-year-old businessman santosh paul tries coming up with a timetable for his wife's murder. >> march will go for a party for her job. >> where at? where? >>. >> you got my number. >> yeah tomorrow's the best time too. >> the more and more we interact with him is the more he really showed how bad he wanted her to die. >> gladston clark is the undercover detective assigned to portray the hit man. >> if it'll happen that day, he would have been happy. >> santosh claims his motive is

simple. receiving a million-dollar life insurance settlement. he wants him and the informant who introduced them to look at the policy. >> you want to come to my house. you can come to my house tonight. >> you're for anxious. you got to stop this. >> i've been trying to do this. i want it done this week. >> when you act like that, you make me nervous. calm down, man. >> convinced he's finally close to realizing his goal, santash arranges to continue the conversation the next night without the informant. in the same mcdonald's parking lot. >> santosh paul begins to walk away and almost runs back and leans in the passenger window. talking to the detective, it almost seems like he's afraid they're going to drive away and it's not going to happen. >> all right? all right. >> i'm going to holler at you. >> all right. >> the importance with having as many meetings as you can have is

to establish that this is clearly the intent of the person that you're pursuing. will they have the same conversation the next day? will they come back and say you know what? i don't know what i was thinking. i don't want this to happen. >> santosh's resolve remains unshakable. >> target is in the silver mercedes. >> when the surveillance videos see his mercedes into the lot for the second meeting, detectives are shocked he's accompanied by his 3 1/2-year-old son. >> we can talk. >> i said you know, now i know what your kids look like. now he knows what i look like. and that's a problem. there better be no problem with my money. >> you shouldn't have him seeing me bro. >> he's only 3 1/2. >> we go to mcdonald's and we're together.

>> the two quickly reach a consensus. santosh leaves the boy in the mercedes and enters the detective's vehicle to discuss the murder. for much of the interview, cars pull in and out of the lot blocking the lens. >> the best thing we had going was the audio feed because it comes through live. every detective in the area is hearing what's going on. >> if you can get this thing done for me i can always help you out. i used to be a trader on wall street. >> he's trying to convince the hit man that this is going to be the best relationship he ever entered into. >> this is my plan. tell me how you feel about it. i'm going to see her schedule. if i can catch her with the car walking i'm driving 50, 60 miles per hour. i hit her and i take off. that's one way. the second thing i'm thinking about is run up to her like i'm

trying to get her pocketbook and run off. that's a robbery gone bad with a carjacking. you know, dead people don't talk. >> suddenly santosh comes up with what he thinks is an even better idea. assaulting his wife during a day trip to new york city. >> she's going to manhattan. downtown manhattan. to the indian embassy. >> okay. >> manhattan. >> that's even better. >> yeah. new york city. >> it is kind of amusing when he was so exciting he remembered she was going to manhattan. suddenly he figured it out. that's the place to do this because all the bad things happen in manhattan. not out here. >> i'm going to stick her in the heart. cause that way she didn't live no matter what. won't live long enough to talk. >> he was excited when i said i'm going to twist the knife in

her heart. that way she'll bleed out. he was very excited about that. >> this is the deal. usually i charge 10 grand up front. you show me your bling and show me the nice stuff. >> i'm not some show-off, man. >> yeah, he is. he is a show off. if you listen to the undercover tape, half the time he's telling me about his stuff. >> stop calling me bro. but listen to me, bro. >> i hate being called bro. he kept calling me bro. so i finally had to address that with him. >> you call me bro too. >> yeah i know because you just called me bro. >> he was irritating with the bro stuff. because he's just -- he wouldn't be somebody i wour friends with. i'll just say that. >> still, the undercover maintains his composure and police believe an arrest is imminent until santosh paul does

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december 19, 2006, undercover detect live gladston park poses as a hitman and gives long island, new york, businessman one more chance to back out of his murder for hire plot. >> it's up to you, man. you can walk away. >> let me tell you, jay, g, i'm telling you, this is the biggest you've ever made. >> when you hear his voice it becomes very clear that this is not a situation where he's being

led down a path he does not want to go down. he is very emphatic about has he wants. >> for the second night in the a row, he's been trying to engineer the death of his wife tina, a 29-year-old accountant. the meeting takes place in a busy mcdonald's parking lot while the couple's 3 1/2-year-old son plays nearby in the couple's model mercedes. >> listen, i'm for real. you're the real deal? >> if you didn't, you look straight up like a cop. >> in these cases they always if you're a cop. well, you look like a cop. they have to react to it. >> you're the first to say that. [ laughter ] >> soon santos switches topics boasting he has the resources.

>> i'm a credible guy. not some schmuck. >> he was -- he was a schmuck. but he sold himself like he sold us he's a community guy. bottom line, he was just a dirt bag. >> yet even the undercover is startled by the suspect's next move. >> are you going to -- piss? right by the -- >> tells him he has to pee. starts peeing right on the bush. >> cops are driving by. in our we're going to be stopped and, you know, talked to. now we're together. i'm just looking like, this guy's an idiot. >> then his son gets out of the car, and it was -- very bizarre when i saw that. >> it was just incredible. i didn't shake his hand after that. i told you that, too.

>> santos then drives away promising to come right back with a down payment for the execution. >> we did follow him. he did go to the citibank and then went to another small corner store to use the cash machine there, also. >> still, santos promises there will be an even larger payment once he receives his wife's life insurance settlement. to substantiate his claim he drops his son off at home and returns to mcdonald's with the policy. >> this was the final names, so to speak, in the coffin, as far as closing this case. >> but his unpredictable nature thwarts police efforts to make a quick arrest. >> for a long time? >> with the rest of the support team helplessly looking on, the undercover enters the suspect's mercedes as he drives out of camera range.

>> i had to get in one point, get in the car. i didn't like to do. i felt safe. the boss wasn't happy i had to go in the car, but i did. >> he moved out of the parking lot on to the side street, and parked in front of my vehicle. we had an obstructive view of the vehicle through the camera lens, but we had plenty of detectives surrounding the area to watch every move. >> you can't make any -- >> no. there's no going back. >> i could see him shifting the transmission as if he was going to pull away again. i have an undercover detective in the passenger's seat and we don't know if he pulls off at this point, this is the time to make the arrest. >> turn the car off now! shut it off! shut it off.

>> they blocked him in. i was out of the car and gone. i felt good that we got a job done. but i felt even better when i drove that nice car of his back. i really enjoyed that. it was a nice car. really was. >> he is charged with solicitation and conspiracy to commit murder. >> and we knew about the one insurance policy. the one he brought to the detective. in the weeks after his arrest we found out there were three more additional policies he was going to come into $4 million instead of the $1 million we originally thought. that, for me, capped the greed. this was all about money. nothing else. money. >> nonetheless, after learning of the charges, tina paul chooses to surround herself with her husband's family, rejecting all overtures to cooperate with the prosecution. >> in this case, luckily, we didn't need her to go forward. we had the crime committed on

the tapes. >> you can't just -- somebody's got to beat up, too. >> rather than face a jury, he throws himself on the mercy of the court pleading guilty to solicitation and conspiracy to commit murder, and receiving a sentence of 5 to 15 years. >> there's only that fascinating dichotomy, if you will, of someone that has done so well in life and to be so stupid to think he could get away with something like this. >> from prison, paul said he wasn't interesting in speaking to msnbc unless we paid him. we declined his offer. >> in all the other undercover work i've done, he's one of the most irritating person i ever worked with. just want to put that out there. >> again, you treat me like an amateur. >> sometimes people think they're smarter than the person they're dealing with, but i guess this case shows who the smart one is.

that's it. due to mature subject matter, viewer discretion is advised. >> i call him the dawn because he walks around like he owns the unit. >> i've been a burglar basically all my life and banks were my favorite place because banks have money. >> an old-school bank robber maintains his swagger. >> that move, you just lost the game. >> this is how i do medication