Mississippi man sentenced to prison for plot to kidnap judge

TUPELO — A Mississippi man has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to kidnap a judge. Attorney General Jim Hood said in a news release Friday that 28-year-old Matthew Fowler of Guntown was sentenced to five years in prison plus five years on supervised release.

Fowler pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring to kidnap Lee County Circuit Court Judge Paul Funderburk as well as plotting to burglarize the judge’s home. Fowler and two other men were charged in January 2016 after witnesses told police they overheard the suspects discussing the plot at a Tupelo restaurant.

Hood’s office handled the prosecution at the request of the local district attorney, who was recused because of a conflict of interest.