A Maryland restaurateur has acknowledged he paid a man to both frame his wife as a terrorist and burn down his restaurant.

The Capital reports 51-year-old Khalil Ahmad pleaded guilty Wednesday to stalking his estranged wife. In exchange, cases pending against him in three Baltimore area counties were dropped.

Federal court documents say Ahmad already faced financial ruin, and was worried about a divorce settlement's financial impact. He discussed having her killed, but settled on paying an informant to frame her, with "a ballistic vest, firearm, bottles of alcohol and extremist jihad writings."

Ahmad also planned to collect the insurance policy on his Pakistani restaurant, Allah Rakha, which means, roughly, "protected by God."

He faces five years on the stalking charge, and could be deported upon his release.

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Information from: The Capital, http://www.capitalgazette.com/