CBS / Texas Department of Corrections Maria Sosa was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison for hiring a hit man to kill her husband Ramon.
In 2015, Maria Sosa allegedly spoke with a man she thought was a hitman and offered him money and gifts if he would kill her husband, Houston-area boxing coach Ramon Sosa. Tonight, 48 Hours investigates the story.
Maria Sosa is currently serving a sentence of up to 20 years in prison after being convicted of second-degree felony solicitation of murder. She has been denied parole, but she is eligible for a new parole hearing in September 2020, according to the Texas Department of Corrections.
With the help of officers and investigators, after learning about the plot against his life, Ramon Sosa faked his death, and investigators posing as the hitman sent photos of him in a shallow grave to his then-wife. The couple had been going through a divorce at the time and leading up to the day he faked his death, Ramon Sosa continued living under the same roof as she was and has since said he was sleeping “with one eye open.”
Maria Sosa Has Been Denied Parole And Is Currently Serving Time Behind Bars
LOOK: What would have been Ramon’s final resting place was actually part of a complex sting operation. Find out more, tonight at 10/9c. t.co/UDv9yYkZvx
Maria Sosa pleaded guilty to second-degree felony solicitation of murder, a lesser charge than the original first-degree felony solicitation of murder, according to The Courier of Montgomery County. If she had not taken the plea deal, Maria Sosa may have ended up getting a sentence of up to life in prison.
The Houston Chronicle reported in July 2015 that Maria Sosa had been arrested in a murder-for-hire plot.
“Ms. Sosa attempted to have her husband murdered through the use of a paid hitman,” chief deputy with the Montgomery County Precinct 3 Constable Office Matt Rodrigue said during a press conference according to the Chronicle. “Through the use of undercover law enforcement officers, she met with and paid whom she thought was a man who would carry out the murder for her.”
In October 16, Maria Sosa was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
At the time of writing, Sosa is serving her time at the Christina Melton Crain Unit. According to the Texas Department of Corrections, she has a projected release date of October 18, 2023, but she is eligible for parole before that date. The Texas Tribune cites her projected release date as July 22, 2035.
Maria Sosa is Eligible for Parole in 2020
This man is NOT dead, but he was supposed to be. How far was he willing to go to find his would-be killer?
Find out more, tonight at 10/9c. t.co/xSwr1ZD11K
Maria Sosa has been eligible for parole since 2017, but she was most recently denied parole in 2019. The court cited reasons based on her offense having “elements of brutality, violence, assaultive behavior, or conscious selection of victim’s vulnerability indicating a conscious disregard for the lives, safety, or property of others.” The decision said the offender still “poses a continuing threat to public safety,” according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
At her sentencing hearing, Maria Sosa’s attorney E. Tay Bond said that she accepted her punishment and knew she made a mistake, according to The Courier of Montgomery County.
“She stood up in court and admitted she made a mistake today and has accepted her punishment,” the attorney stated. “That is more reflective of her character than this series of bad decisions that put her in this position.”
Bond added that he hopes Sosa’s story will inspire people to get help rather than turning to drastic measures.
“From her perspective, she was in an unmanageable abusive relationship, and she wanted to get out and away from him,” he said. “She should have sought protection from a divorce attorney and not gone off into the deep end and come up with that plan.”
Maria Sosa’s next parole decision will take place in September 2020 according to the Texas Department of Corrections.
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