Inmate Allegedly Put Hit on Ga. Officer

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. --

Investigators said a man tried to hire a hit man to kill the arresting officer inside of his jail cell.

Mejia was arrested last May when officer D.K. Mishoe found 5 bricks of cocaine inside of a car that he said he borrowed from a friend after a traffic stop, police said.

Prosecutors said Jonathan Mejia asked his cell mate in the DeKalb County Jail to recommend a hit man to kill the police officer who arrested him. The cell mate immediately called the GBI.

"Mr. Mejia made statements that he understood if Officer Mishoe was killed, the case against him would be dropped," said prosecutor John Melvin.

Mejia's cellmate contacted the GBI, who sent an undercover agent into the jail, posing as a hit man and agreed on a price of $20,000 to kill Mishoe, according to investigators.

"The defendant did come up with 150 bucks through family members, the GBI agent cussed him out and said, 'There's no way I'm going to kill a cop for such little money,' and the defendant said, 'The 20,000 will come. I just need time to get it,'" Melvin said.

Mejia then broke down in tears when the GBI agent told him who he was. He has since written a letter of apology, investigators said.

Mejia went to court Thursday wanting to plead guilty. Prosecutors argued for a 45-year sentence. Prosecutors said they need to protect DeKalb officers.

"It's a county where the job is not easy for our officers, and there is an element of danger," said Don Geary, chief assistant District Attorney.

The defense argued for the minimum sentence, which is 25 years. The defense said if Mejia was really a trafficker, he would have had $20,000 easily.

The judge said he would take the case under advisement and then Mejia will be able to decide whether he still wants to plead guilty or go to trial.

Copyright 2010 by wsbtv.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.