Ottawa man convicted in murder-for-hire case in Will County

A jury in Will County convicted an Ottawa man Friday of trying to hire someone to kill the witnesses against him in a sexual assault case. Forty-three year old Christian Shepherd could get 20 to 40 years behind bars when he’s sentenced. State’s Attorney James Glascow says Shepherd was in jail facing a charge of criminal sexual assault when he tried to hire a killer. The intended targets were the person he’s accused of sexually assaulting, that person’s mother, and two police officers. Shepherd had worked as a school bus driver.