Fred Tokars. Have you ever heard of him? If you live in the Atlanta area, there's a big chance that you have. Tokars used to be a lawyer who was involved in criminal activities such as money laundering and racketeering but what makes him interesting to me is the fact that when his wife discovered his criminal life, he paid for a hitman to kill her in front of his own two sons. That kind of mind is very interesting to me because the act is so cold-blooded that it just defies my understanding.
The crime.
Sara Tokars was arriving home from Florida with her two sons in the backseat of the car. When she got there, she found a stranger waiting. He forced her into the back of the car and drove off with all three. Then he stopped the vehicle, shot Sara in the head and ran away leaving the two little boys covered in blood. They were able to walk to a nearby house and get help.
Right away Fred Tokars was a suspect in his wife's murder. The police learned of marital problems - Sara had told family members that Fred was often angry and temperamental and she suspected that he was involved with a very bad crowd of people . Her sister stated that Sara had called her and said that she had found proof of Fred's activities but she would not tell her more over the phone . She also said she had found a way to divorce Fred and keep custody of the boys .
Tokars himself made police and Sara's family even more suspicious . After her
death he was uncooperative and he bemoaned the loss of his lifestyle , not the loss of his partner or the tragedy that his kids had suffered . He attempted
suicide because he said he was depressed . Then police discovered that there was a life insurance for Sara in the amount of $1.7 million . Fred was the sole beneficiary .
Police began looking at Fred's business associates and soon discovered a shady character by the name of Eddie Lawrence who was arrested on bad check charges . At first he denied any involvement in the murder but later - several months later - confessed that he had offered his secretary's brother Curtis Rower $5000 to get rid of "a white lady".
He had dropped Curtis off at Tokar's house where Curtis waited for her until she got home with the boys .
Tokars had insisted that the boys remain unharmed but that Sara be shot in the head to make sure she was dead .
He was arrested and convicted of money laundering , racketeering , kidnapping and
murder for hire . He received four
life sentences without the possibility of parole .
