COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho -- A federal judge ordered former Aryan Nations attorney Edgar Steele, who's accused of hiring a hitman to kill his wife, to stay in jail until his trial starts.
Steele said the murder for hire charge is "one giant plot against me" during his detention hearing on Tuesday in the U.S. Federal Courthouse in Coeur d'Alene.
Steele was represented by attorney Roger Pevan in the hearing that determined whether he will remain in jail until his trial.
During the hearing Tuesday, a portion of an audio tape was played in court of a conversation from jail on June 13th between Steele and his son, Rex, and his wife, Cyndi.
Prosecutors said Steele is heard telling his wife and son that two recorded phone conversations between Steele and the alleged hitman, Larry Fairfax, do not contain Steele's voice and he denied plotting to kill his wife. Steele claimed in the call from jail that it's all "one giant plot against me."
Steele was arrested June 12 in Sagle, ID. According to the FBI, it was the same day the hit was supposed to take place.
Investigators with the FBI told KREM 2 News Steele paid Fairfax $500 up front for the hit on his wife and mother-in-law, and told them he would pay another $100,000 if the insurance settlement came through. The FBI says the plan was to make the hit "look like an accident."
Both women were located in Oregon City, Oregon, where Steele's wife was visiting her sick mother.
The FBI believes Steele may have been planning the hit for 6 months.
Steele is not separated from his wife.
