A North Carolina man was sentenced to 78 months in jail after he attempted to buy a lethal dose of radioactive poison that he planned to put in his roommate's food. Prosecutors said that 28-year-old Bryant Budi tried to kill his roommate four separate times. In one instance, he contacted a hitman, who turned out to be an undercover agent, and asked to him to murder his roommate, who was not named, and make it look like a robbery gone wrong.
After a failed attempt to poison the man, Budi went online and tried to buy radioactive poison. The seller turned out to be an undercover FBI agent and sent him a harmless powder instead of the poison. Budi was arrested after he took possession of the substance. He pleaded guilty to attempted possession of radioactive material with intent to cause death or serious bodily injury to another person.
Bryant used to be friends with the man and let him move in after he ended up homeless. The two lived together for over a year, but their relationship fell apart. Bryant claimed his roommate was lazy and became increasingly aggressive towards him. In one instance, Bryant claimed his roommate threatened to kill his family if he didn't give him money. Eventually, Bryant had enough and decided to kill his former friend.
Bryant was facing life in prison on the charges, which was the first case of its kind in the federal courts. In addition to spending six-and-a-half years behind bars, Bryant was also sentenced to two years of supervised release once his prison term is completed.
Photo: U.S. Attorney’s Office