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Man testifies he was hired to kill Virginia Beach woman, son

Richard Stoner testified that he killed Lois Schmidt, her son from another marriage and a dog and wounded her brother and then set their home on fire.
Credit: Volusia County Sheriff's Office and Cass County Jail
Christopher Schmidt and Richard Stoner

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — An Indiana Army veteran has testified in court that he was hired by a Florida man to kill the man's wife and her 7-year-old son in Virginia.

The Virginian-Pilot reports 43-year-old Richard Stoner told the court Thursday how Christopher Schmidt hired him and planned the 2004 slaying of 29-year-old Lois Schmidt and Jonathan Vetrano.

Stoner said the two men were shooting guns in a Florida field when the 46-year-old Schmidt mentioned wanting to shoot his wife. The Schmidts were divorcing and fighting over custody of their 1-year-old daughter.

Stoner testified that he killed Lois Schmidt, her son from another marriage and a dog and wounded her brother and then set their home on fire.

Stoner and Schmidt were arrested in June on charges of first-degree murder and extradited to Virginia.

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