Texas Man Pleads Guilty in Murder-for-Hire of Troy Couple

A Texas man pleaded guilty today in the murder-for-hire of a Troy, Michigan couple, announced United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade.

Ms. McQuade was joined in the announcement by Andrew G. Arena, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Special Agent in Charge Brian Moskowitz, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, Detroit Division.

Pleading guilty before Chief United States District Judge Gerald E. Rosen was Douglas Tobar, age 42, formerly of Houston, Texas.

According to the information presented to the court at the time of the guilty plea, TOBAR and co-defendant Narayan Thadani arranged for Miguel Servando and Nelson Mendoza to travel from Texas to Michigan with the intent to murder Aasha and Brij Chhadbra of Troy, Michigan. Servando and Mendoza were arrested by the Taylor Police Department after a traffic stop while traveling southbound on I-75. The traffic stop led to a search of the vehicle which revealed, among other things, a diagram and address of a home in Troy, Michigan, and a copy of a passport picture of a woman. The Taylor officer requested that the Troy Police Department conduct a welfare check on the home. The Troy Police Department’s welfare check resulted in the discovery of the two victims, Brij and Asha Chhabra, who had been killed.

Co-defendant THADANI pleaded guilty last month and will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

United States Attorney Barbara L. McQuade stated, “This case is a great example of the success that can be achieved when law enforcement agencies work together. Through collaboration, we are able to bring violent criminals to justice."

The penalty for the charged offense is death or life imprisonment, however, under the terms of the plea agreement the government is recommending a sentence of 20 years in prison based on TOBAR’S cooperation in this case. Thadani and Tobar are currently in the custody of the United States Marshals Service. Servando and Mendoza were charged with first degree murder by the Oakland County Prosecutor's office. Servando pleaded guilty to state and federal charges, and is currently serving a life sentence in federal prison. Mendoza was found guilty after a trial on state charges, and is currently serving a life sentence in state custody.

United States Attorney Barbara McQuade praised the and hard work of the Taylor Police Department, the Troy Police Department, the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Immigration Customs Enforcement for conducting an aggressive, thorough, and effective joint investigation. This multi-jurisdictional investigation serves as another example of how the public can greatly benefit from the cooperation of federal and local law enforcement agencies.

Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Roth and Jennifer Gorland are handling the prosecution of this case.