Sentencing delayed for political operative at center of bizarre NJ murder for hire case
Sean Caddle, the man who pleaded guilty to paying two hit men to kill his former friend and associate, will be sentenced in Newark on June 29, three months later than scheduled, U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez said during a 10-minute conference call Tuesday.
Probation officers were scheduled to interview Caddle to prepare a pre-sentencing report earlier this month, but the meeting was pushed back because Caddle's mother died after she suffered a severe "medical episode" that likely caused a two-car crash on Feb. 27.
Diane P. Caddle, 72, was the co-signer of her son's $1 million unsecured appearance bond.
Sean Caddle, who cooperated with the government on an unknown investigation, was released on home confinement with an ankle monitor after pleading guilty to federal charges in January 2022.
Landlord files to evict Caddle
The landlord of his Sussex County home filed for eviction, writing in court filings that Caddle and his family owe more than $10,000 in unpaid rent. His eviction trial, also postponed in the wake of his mother's death, was rescheduled for March 28.
More:Complete coverage, timeline for murder-for-hire case that has NJ political world abuzz
More:Franklin Borough crash that killed Flanders woman likely caused by medical episode
"At this point, his cooperation with the government is really at a conclusion," said Lee Cortes, executive assistant U.S. attorney. "It's also my understanding that his mother was his co-signer, and so we feel that we're going to be reconsidering the conditions of his release if he's not able to find" a new one. "At this point, the government is weighing whether we should have a bail hearing."
Sharing information?
Some former prosecutors and defense attorneys have speculated that Caddle must be sharing significant information, as people who plead guilty to charges of federal conspiracy to murder rarely get the luxury of home confinement with an ankle monitor while awaiting sentencing.
More:Hit man in NJ political murder-for-hire case sentenced to 20 years in prison
The topic of the cooperation is unclear, though Caddle’s name appears in court documents in another case, involving Tony Teixeira, the former chief of staff to New Jersey Senate President Nicholas Scutari. Teixeira pleaded guilty in federal court in November to tax evasion and wire fraud charges. His sentencing was also postponed three months, to June 27.
Judge is concerned
Cortes said probation officers have had difficulties scheduling a firm date for a telephone conference with Caddle.
"It just causes me great concern that he was not going to be interviewed until just weeks before the sentencing was supposed to occur," Vazquez said. "In other words, this interview should have been done last year, and the end of last year at the latest. I don't have all the factors as to why it was not conducted. But I need to get it resolved at this point."
Vazquez ordered Caddle to appear at the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Building in Newark on Thursday, March 16, for a pre-sentencing interview with probation, and the judge set a "firm" sentencing date of June 29. Caddle's hearing has been rescheduled three times.
Sympathetic to family circumstances
Caddle's defense attorneys and prosecutors should meet on the issues of his conditions of release, Vazquez said, and submit their positions to the court by next week.
"I'm obviously sympathetic to his family circumstances and potentially having to relocate," Cortes said. "But, with respect to Mr. Caddle, he's facing sentencing on a very serious crime ... If we're contemplating additional time, I think we're going to be at a revisiting bail circumstances point."
Caddle, 45, pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to commit murder for hire, confessing to hiring a Connecticut man to kill Michael Galdieri, who was found stabbed in his apartment on May 22, 2014.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Sentencing in NJ murder for hire case of Sean Caddle delayed
