Elderly man jailed after spiking wife's drink and attempting to kill her in plot to run off with stepdaughter
29 August 2024, 09:39
An elderly man has been jailed after he confessed to drugging his wife with cocaine before attempting to kill her, as part of an elaborate plot to run away with his stepdaughter.
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Alfred W Ruf, from Indiana, was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated battery posing a risk of death in connection with the incident.
According to a sworn statement, the 71-year-old US citizen is said to have eventually confessed to the crime "because he felt bad".
Police began looking into the case in 2022 after Mr Ruf's wife, Lisa Bishop, was treated in hospital multiple times and told doctors she suspected her husband was trying to kill her.
His wife is said to have only become suspicious after she noticed an odd white residue at the bottom of her coke can.
Ruf is said to have given the drugs to his wife 12 times between the beginning of September 2021 and the end of December 2021, incidents that required six hospital trips.
She later handed officers a pill bottle containing a white powder and flagged that he may have been adding it to her drinks.
She told doctors the drugs left her feeling "drowsy" and "lightheaded".
The court heard how the pair had a "volatile" relationship, with police noting a history of domestic violence - including one incident in which Ms Bishop had previously run over her husband with a car around a year prior to his arrest.
According to court records, Mr Ruf was initially set to face a further charge of conspiracy to commit murder, but the charges were dismissed as part of a plea deal.
Ruf also allegedly told police detectives that his wife's daughter, who was from a previous relationship, provided him with the white powder used to drug Ms Bishop.
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He also told investigators he was in a sexual relationship with the daughter - and a friend.
However, Attorney John L Tompkins told the court that wasn't true, adding that the step-daughter has denied any involvement in the alleged poisoning.
Attorney John L Tompkins said: "It was a mutually destructive relationship and it's just unfortunate. And what she did to him doesn't excuse what he did."
In a statement revealed in court documents, Ruf "would state that he knew it would kill his wife."
"But then Alfred would explain that he would give his wife the substance just to make her pass out so the other two females would come over so he could have sex with them."
Ruf also claimed that the daughter wanted to get marry him after they "took care of" his wife.
Ruf has now been sentenced to four years in jail and a further five years probation for his crimes.
