“I Couldn’t Process It”: Massachusetts Woman Stunned After FBI Reveals Ex-Husband Paid $50K for a Hitman During Custody Dispute.
A federal judge sentenced a Massachusetts lawyer to 10 years in prison for attempting to hire a hitman to kill his ex-wife.
Allen Gessen, 49, was found guilty of murder-for-hire after evidence showed he tried to enlist an undercover FBI agent—whom he believed to be a contract killer—to carry out the murder of his former partner and the mother of his two children, Priscilla Chigariro.
According to federal prosecutors, the pair had been locked in a prolonged and bitter conflict that escalated into a contentious child custody battle.
A federal judge sentenced a Massachusetts lawyer to 10 years in prison for attempting to hire a hitman to kill his ex-wife.
Allen Gessen, 49, was found guilty of murder-for-hire after evidence showed he tried to enlist an undercover FBI agent—whom he believed to be a contract killer—to carry out the murder of his former partner and the mother of his two children, Priscilla Chigariro.
According to federal prosecutors, the pair had been locked in a prolonged and bitter conflict that escalated into a contentious child custody battle.
Gessen initially planned to have Chigariro unlawfully deported from the U.S., offering $100,000 to an agent to arrange it. He later concluded that killing her would be a “cheaper” and more permanent solution.
He told the agent he had previously tried to hire someone to carry out the murder. Prosecutors said he had paid a foreign hit team to travel to Massachusetts, conduct surveillance, and assess the situation, but abandoned the plan after being quoted an additional $210,000 to complete the job.
Gessen gave the undercover agent a $25,000 down payment, including a $2,000 gold coin and a $23,000 bank transfer to an account in San Francisco. He intended to pay another $25,000 once the killing was done. To conceal the arrangement, he drafted a written agreement for fake “consulting services” and provided detailed information about his ex-partner’s location, routine, and daily habits.
A federal grand jury indicted Gessen in July 2022, while he was still licensed to practice law in New York. Chigariro said she was stunned when FBI agents came to her home following the charges.
“I can’t even begin to describe how I felt in that moment,” she shared in a January 2023 YouTube video recounting her marriage. “All I remember was this overwhelming numbness. I was confused—I couldn’t process it or make sense of it. It just wouldn’t sink in.”
In a five-part vlog series, Chigariro shared that she and Gessen lived in Zimbabwe—where she briefly worked as a model—and later in Russia during their relationship. She described the relationship as abusive, recalling an incident in which Gessen struck her so hard she lost consciousness. She also said there were times when he kept her son away from her for extended periods.
Following a one-week trial in May 2023, a federal jury found Gessen guilty. After serving his prison sentence, he will also undergo three years of supervised release.
