“I want that woman to be out of my life totally."
A US Indian businessman was found guilty of conspiring to hire a hitman to kill his estranged wife.
Narsan Lingala, aged 57, of Indiana, was convicted on one count each of conspiring to commit murder for hire and travelling interstate or using interstate facilities with intent that a murder for hire be committed and two counts of attempting to tamper with a witness.
Lingala also attempted to tamper with the testimony of a conspirator and an undercover law enforcement officer.
His co-conspirator and lover, Sandya Reddy, pleaded guilty in April 2019 to her role in the scheme and was sentenced on August 10, 2020, to 63 months in prison.
Lingala married Saroja Alkanti in 1995 and they have two grown children.
He spent years trying to fight his divorce proceedings, including the amount of child support for his two children and alimony.
Lingala allegedly has a history of domestic violence incidents and was served with a restraining order during the course of his marriage.
During divorce proceedings in 2012, Lingala had agreed to pay weekly child support of $358, on calculations of his annual income at $162,000.
His wife’s income was $47,000.
But during a 2017 case, Lingala claimed his income had been calculated incorrectly.
He also said that the valuation of his business, LMN Solutions, of which he is the sole owner, was calculated incorrectly and much higher than its actual worth.
He argued that he should pay lower amounts of child support and alimony.
Lingala further alleged that he entered into the 2012 divorce agreement under constraints because he was handcuffed and faced a hostile judge.
He did not win in the proceedings.
The couple lived in New Jersey, but Lingala later moved to Indiana with Reddy.
In May 2018, Lingala was in a holding cell at the Middlesex County Superior Courthouse as he awaited a court hearing.
While there, he asked another inmate if he knew anyone who could kill his estranged wife.
The inmate said he knew such a person.
In June 2018, under the direction of law enforcement, the inmate introduced Lingala to an undercover agent posing as a hitman.
Over several weeks, Lingala and the undercover hitman spoke over the phone and planned to meet in person the next time that Lingala travelled from Indiana to New Jersey.
On August 18, 2018, the US Indian businessman and the undercover hitman agreed to meet outside a New Jersey shopping centre.
Lingala and Reddy arrived outside the shopping centre and approached the undercover hitman.
He introduced Reddy and said that she understood what was going on.
Lingala, Reddy and the man entered his car. They then spoke whilst being recorded.
The undercover hitman asked Lingala to confirm what he wanted him to do.
According to charging documents, Lingala said:
“I want that woman to be out of my life totally. Never again. She never comes back.”
The undercover hitman asked: “You want me to take care of her?”
Lingala replied: “Yeah.”
The undercover hitman clarified: “She’s done, I’m going to kill her. End of story.”
Lingala stated: “Yeah. End of story.”
During the conversation, Lingala gave the undercover hitman his estranged wife’s home address, age and phone number.
He also described the layout of her home, where she worked and details of her work commute.
The trio also discussed fees. The undercover hitman said the job would cost between $5,000 and $10,000, depending on the job’s complexity.
Lingala asked if he could pay after the job was done. The undercover hitman said he would need a down payment.
Lingala then asked: “Can I give you $1000 down payment?”
The undercover hitman agreed.
Following the meeting, Lingala and Reddy were arrested.
The couple were initially charged with first-degree attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
After her arrest, Reddy gave a videotaped statement in which she admitted her knowledge to the murder plot.
Lingala was convicted on June 11, 2021.
The US Indian businessman faces up to 50 years in prison, along with a maximum fine of $250,000.
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