Charges dropped against JBLM officer in murder-for-hire case
TACOMA, Wash. -- Prosecutors have dropped charges against a Joint Base Lewis-McChord Army officer who was accused of hiring a hit man to kill his estranged wife and his boss.
Lt. Col. Robert E. Underwood, 46, had pleaded not guilty to three counts of felony harassment for allegedly targeting his boss, his wife and his girlfriend.
But on Friday, prosecutors dismissed the charges after the credibility of their witness was called into question.
Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said contents found on the defendant's computer did not corroborate his wife's claims. He added the alleged victim had left a message on the defendant's phone, claiming she was going to get him.
The allegations first surfaced when Underwood's girlfriend contacted his wife in March and told her Underwood was "on edge" and threatening to kill his wife and his boss, according to the statement of probable cause. He claimed to have paid a man $150,000 to kill the pair, and added he had used foreign accounts to hold the funds so as not to leave a trail, the woman said.
Underwood's girlfriend also said she had seen on his laptop a photo of his teen daughter, naked and sleeping, alongside pornographic pictures of children from his last deployment, DuPont police said.The man had also searched the Internet for information on "how to to get teens drunk and have sex with them," said statement.
The woman said when she confronted Underwood about what she had found, he told her "her head was on the chopping block."
Underwood also threatened to blow up the state Capitol building, and said "if things don't go his way after the divorce proceedings ... he was going to make headlines," according to DuPont police.
Underwood's estranged wife told investigators the man has "nothing to lose" and has "an arsenal of weapons" as well as the "ability to save the $150,000 and hide it."
Underwood and his wife have been married for 18 years and have two teen daughters.
He is assigned to the 191st Infantry Brigade, which focuses on training support. He joined the military in 1988, and served as a ROTC instructor at Eastern Washington University from February 2005 until December 2007.
Lt. Col. Robert E. Underwood, 46, had pleaded not guilty to three counts of felony harassment for allegedly targeting his boss, his wife and his girlfriend.
But on Friday, prosecutors dismissed the charges after the credibility of their witness was called into question.
Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said contents found on the defendant's computer did not corroborate his wife's claims. He added the alleged victim had left a message on the defendant's phone, claiming she was going to get him.
The allegations first surfaced when Underwood's girlfriend contacted his wife in March and told her Underwood was "on edge" and threatening to kill his wife and his boss, according to the statement of probable cause. He claimed to have paid a man $150,000 to kill the pair, and added he had used foreign accounts to hold the funds so as not to leave a trail, the woman said.
Underwood's girlfriend also said she had seen on his laptop a photo of his teen daughter, naked and sleeping, alongside pornographic pictures of children from his last deployment, DuPont police said.The man had also searched the Internet for information on "how to to get teens drunk and have sex with them," said statement.
The woman said when she confronted Underwood about what she had found, he told her "her head was on the chopping block."
Underwood also threatened to blow up the state Capitol building, and said "if things don't go his way after the divorce proceedings ... he was going to make headlines," according to DuPont police.
Underwood's estranged wife told investigators the man has "nothing to lose" and has "an arsenal of weapons" as well as the "ability to save the $150,000 and hide it."
Underwood and his wife have been married for 18 years and have two teen daughters.
He is assigned to the 191st Infantry Brigade, which focuses on training support. He joined the military in 1988, and served as a ROTC instructor at Eastern Washington University from February 2005 until December 2007.
