Cops: Woman tried to hire hit man to kill ex-husband

A Paulding County woman is accused of trying to hire a hit man to kill her ex-husband. But the man she thought she was hiring for the job was instead an undercover agent, the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office said.

Melissa Bennett Silvers, 48, of a Dallas address, was arrested Friday and charged with conspiracy to commit murder, a felony, according to Cpl. Ashley Henson. Silvers was arrested in the murder-for-hire plot at the Lost Mountain Daycare center, where she worked as a teacher, Henson said.

Silvers allegedly contacted an undercover agent two weeks ago regarding her plans to have ex-husband killed, Henson said. The two communicated by telephone before Silvers met the agent Dec. 13 in a business parking lot, where she allegedly paid the agent a portion of the agreed upon price for the job. The planned fee for the crime was not released.

According to investigators, Silvers devised a plan to have her ex-husband be home at 8:30 p.m. the following day.

“The agent was supposed to be the firewood delivery person and while he was there he was supposed to shoot and kill Silvers’ ex-husband,” Henson said in an emailed statement. “Silvers was adamant that she wanted the incident to take place outside so there was no mess inside the home.”

Silvers and her ex-husband had been divorced since January, but continued to live in the same home because of their adopted children, Henson said.