Grandmother Pays 19-Year-Old Grandson To Kill Her Husband

Bond for a 64-year-old woman who allegedly paid her grandson to kill her husband was set at $500,000 Saturday [Apr. 6]. Janet Strickland of Chicago was charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of armed robbery with a firearm after her husband was fatally shot in the gangway near his home on the Far South Side while on his way to dialysis, police said. William Strickland, 72, was shot six times in the back on March 2 while on his way to dialysis treatment in what police suspected to be a robbery.

Janet Strickland was reportedly not in court for her hearing Saturday because she was receiving treatment for a lung disease, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Janet Strickland allegedly commissioned her grandson to kill her husband, and watched as he did so before stealing a casino bag with money in it as her husband lied shot on the street, according to the Sun-Times.

Janet Strickland reportedly used the stolen money to take her grandson on a shopping spree. The 19-year-old grandson, also named William Strickland, was held without bond March 30 in connection with the murder and admitted in court to stealing his grandfather’s gun and committing the crime. He also said he used money from his grandfather’s wallet to purchase tattoos, new shoes, a cell phone and other items. A life sentence may be imposed, though the younger Strickland has no criminal background