Police: Man arrested in plot to kill wife

Jorge Victorino-Vazquez believed his wife's life was worth $2,000.

That's how much he paid an undercover officer he thought was a hit man to kill his 27-year-old wife and make it look like a home invasion, according to his arrest report released Monday.

Victorino-Vazquez, who turned 32 Monday in the county jail, said his wife deserved to die for the many wrongs she had inflicted upon him. He referred to the hit as his "birthday present," the report said.

"He wanted his wife killed because she cheated on him, took his money, took his vehicles, wouldn't sign papers for him, and always threatened to call INS to have him deported," the arrest report said.

Victorino-Vazquez is being held without bail at the Clark County Detention Center on three counts of solicitation to commit murder, three counts of conspiracy to commit murder and three counts of burglary. He was arrested late Saturday.

His wife, Marisela Sandoval, was never harmed.

She said Monday afternoon that her husband was not the same man she married in the summer of 2009. They have a 3-year-old daughter.

"It was shocking to me," Sandoval said. "He's a whole different person. It's kind of like sleeping with the enemy."

Investigators were tipped off to the plan Wednesday when an informant told police that Victorino-Vazquez had called April 15 asking whether he knew someone willing to sell him a gun or kill his wife.

Victorino-Vazquez told the informant, the report said, that he wanted to hire someone who could break into his home when he and his wife were sleeping, kill his wife, beat him up and steal valuable belongings.

The informant initially didn't want to go to police but then had a change of heart because of guilt, the report said.

Police began working with the informant regularly. On Thursday, the informant called Victorino-Vazquez while an officer sat next to the informant and listened to the phone call. The informant told Victorino-Vazquez that he had met someone who could help him if he would be willing to meet with the hit man.

An undercover officer and Victorino-Vazquez met three times to plan the killing and collect payments, the report said.

During the first meeting, on Thursday night at a business near Decatur and Oakey boulevards, the undercover officer was "equipped with a recording device to covertly record conversations" with Victorino-Vazquez. At the meeting, they established a $2,000 price for Sandoval's death.

The report said Victorino-Vazquez did not relent in his desire to kill his wife.

"He was serious and he was good with his decision," the report said.

The undercover officer then asked Victorino-Vazquez for a diagram of his house, a picture of his wife and $1,000 up front.

During the second meeting, on Friday, the undercover officer met Victorino-Vazquez at a shopping plaza parking lot near Sahara Avenue and Decatur. While plainclothes detectives monitored the meeting, Victorino-Vazquez got into the undercover officer's vehicle and handed him $1,000 in $100 and $20 denominations. He also provided a photo of his wife and a hand-drawn diagram of his house, the report said.

During the meeting, Victorino-Vazquez again was adamant that he wanted his wife dead. The hit was to take place Monday, a significant day for Victorino-Vazquez, the report said: "He went as far as to say it would be his birthday present."

The report said Victorino-Vazquez had a clear grasp of the English language.

On Saturday, he met with the undercover officer in the same shopping plaza parking lot. During that final meeting, Victorino-Vazquez made another $1,000 payment.

The undercover officer then gave a "predetermined bust signal," and detectives who identified themselves as police swarmed around Victorino-Vazquez, who was in the undercover officer's vehicle.

During the final encounter, a female child was sitting in the front of Victorino-Vazquez's pickup, the report said.

Once detained, Victorino-Vazquez told a detective that he had no regrets.

"Marisela had been very abusive towards him and tried to have him killed in the past," the report said. "Marisela took his money; had another boyfriend living at his house; took his cars; and lied to the police to have him arrested."

Sandoval, who did consider leaving him as the relationship soured, said the accusations her husband made were hurtful and untrue. When they first got together, she said, Victorino-Vazquez was a hard worker who won the admiration of her two children from a previous relationship.

Sandoval said she never cared about money; she has a well-paying job at a hospital. She said she never threatened to deport her husband, who is undocumented.

Victorino-Vazquez was born in Mexico, according to the report.

Sandoval, who has two other children in addition to the child she has with her husband, said she feels an angel was watching over her family. She said if the informant hadn't gone to police, things might have ended tragically for her.

Sandoval said she hasn't been able to sleep since her husband's arrest.

"I just want peace in my life."

Contact reporter Antonio Planas at aplanas@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638.