Cornelius Green: Former Missouri principal receives life sentence for hiring hitman to kill teacher pregnant with his child
Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
MISSOURI: Cornelius Green, a former middle school principal in Missouri, accused of masterminding the murder of a pregnant teacher on his staff and her unborn child, has pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire charges.
The guilty plea entered on Wednesday, February 28, reveals a gruesome plot involving stolen school funds and a hired hitman.
Principal admits murder-for-hire plot
The principal, from Performing Arts Middle School, admitted to one count of murder-for-hire and one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire in the 2016 killing of 30-year-old Jocelyn Peters, who was seven months pregnant at the time.
Prosecutors recommend a life sentence for the principal, whose co-defendant, longtime friend Phillip Cutler, is accused of gunning down the expecting teacher for $2,500.
Timeline of the sinister shooting
The court records unveil a disturbing story, alleging that the principal, married to another woman in 2015, engaged in a romantic relationship with Peters, resulting in her pregnancy. Green and Cutler allegedly began planning the murder in early 2016.
The criminal indictment details how Green, on February 29, 2016, communicated with Cutler, arranging for him to come from Oklahoma to Missouri at the end of March. A text message exchange reveals the former principals' instruction of "sending the pacge (sic)."
On March 7, 2016, Green sent Cutler a UPS package containing $2,500 in cash, using the school's address as the return address, as per Law & Crime.
“It was further part of the conspiracy that on or about March 8, 2016, in Oklahoma, Cutler received the package sent by Green, accepting the cash in exchange for his planned killing of Peters and her unborn child,” the indictment stated. The shooter arrived in St. Louis on March 21 and stayed at the former principal's residence, while Green established an alibi in Chicago.
On March 24, Cutler used Green's car and keys to unlawfully enter Peters' apartment, where he fatally shot her in the head with a .38 caliber firearm. A potato was used as a silencer to muffle the sound of the shot. Green, back in St Louis, purchased an Amtrak ticket, providing an alibi for the time of the murder.
The sentencing hearing for Green is scheduled for June 5, where he faces the prospect of spending the rest of his life in a federal correctional facility.
