3 Washington County jail inmates charged in murder-for-hire plot

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- An inmate in the Washington County jail, being held on 20 counts of sexual assault and kidnapping, allegedly hired two other jail inmates to kill one of the victims in the ongoing cases.

Dru Hendrix allegedly paid Mario Guaderrama and Zion Unga each $30,000 in the murder-for-hire plot, the Washington County Sheriff's Office said. All three allegedly planned the hit while they were in jail on various charges in separate crimes.

Authorities said Hendrix, 58, had $30,000 placed in Guaderrama's jail booking account, and also arranged for Unga to get $30,000 after he was released from jail in October.

Unga was released from jail before the plot became known, the sheriff's office said. But the 36-year-old was arrested November 6.

Once that happened, Hendrix and Guaderrama -- who were still in jail -- were brought up on more charges. All three men face 1st-degree conspiracy to commit murder.

New charges for Hendrix include solicitation to commit murder and witness tampering. He now faces a total of 35 charges in Washington County plus a kidnapping and sexual assault case in Columbia County.

Unga was arrested in August for possession of a stolen car and a few other charges.

Guaderrama was initially arrested in September for violating the conditions of his release and failing to appear in a different case.

On the day they were arrested in the murder-for-hire plot, a search warrant found about $140,000 from accounts linked to the trio. Another search warrant at Guaderrama's Hillsboro home found 3 handguns, a rifle, a silencer, a switchblade and brass knuckles, officials said.

At an upcoming hearing, prosecutors will ask that all three men be denied bail.

Detectives are seeking tips for information on the three men. They ask anyone with information to contact WCSO.