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Wife of Fake DTE Worker Sentenced in Rochester Hills Murder Plot

Court-read text messages with seized fake utility materials served as central evidence of her planning role.

Overview

  • Amanda Ileana Hernandez was sentenced on Aug. 12, 2026 to a multi-year prison term that court reporting identifies as five to 20 years.
  • She pleaded no contest on July 22 to conspiracy to commit first-degree home invasion, accessory after the fact, and conspiracy to falsely impersonate a utility worker.
  • Prosecutors relied on dozens of texts read in court and evidence that Hernandez helped obtain fake DTE magnet signs, gas-check paperwork and hard hats to link her to the scheme.
  • Two men who carried out the Oct. 11, 2024 break-in and killed 72-year-old Hussein Murray were convicted and sentenced to life without parole in December 2025.
  • Victim impact statements and the judge’s rebuke highlighted the family’s loss and the case underscores how utility-worker impersonation and digital records can expose and prove premeditated home-invasion plots.