Man sentenced in plot to castrate, kill Justin Bieber
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - A man accused of being a part of a murder-for-hire plot to castrate and kill pop singer Justin Bieber was sentenced to prison on Friday.
Mark Staake was sentenced to nine years for conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and another nine years to be served concurrently for a second count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
In November 2012, Dana Martin reportedly hired his nephew, Tanner Ruane, and Martin's ex-fellow inmate Staake to murder Bieber and his bodyguard in Vermont, officials said.
As previously reported by our media partner the Las Cruces Sun-News, Martin told New Mexico State Police that he targeted the singer because he was tired of being a "nobody" and was irked by Bieber not answering his fan mail, court documents say. Martin reportedly has an elaborate Bieber tattoo on his lower leg.
Martin convinced Staake to commit the murder by saying he had access to large amounts of money and strong gang connections. Martin told Staake that after the job was done, he would give Staake refuge at a multimillion-dollar family farm and give him favorable standing with the gang, officials said.
When Staake and Ruane arrived in Vermont, they missed an exit that would keep them from entering Canada and had to turn around and pass through a Vermont point of entry, officials said.
Staake was arrested for an outstanding warrant for a probation violation in New Mexico.
Ruane was released and later called Martin at the Southern New Mexico Correctional Facility. The recorded conversation showed that Ruane regretted the events and didn't want to continue with the hit without Staake because it was his "deal," officials said.
Raune was later arrested by New York State Police, and officers recovered a pair of pruning shears and information on the intended victims' last known locations, officials said.
Ruane pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and received a deferred sentence of five years. After serving about a year and a half, he was placed on supervised probation.
Martin is currently serving consecutive life sentences for brutal crimes committed in Vermont. He pleaded guilty to criminal solicitation to commit first-degree murder and criminal solicitation to commit first-degree felony murder. His sentence was nine years followed by two years on probation.
Unrelated to this case, Justin Bieber was in the news Wednesday night for releasing this video apology in regards to his behavior. Bieber is seen pouring his heart out in the video as he apologizes to his fans.
