DETROIT – Joe Gentz pleaded guilty Friday to 2nd degree murder in connection with the death of Grosse Pointe Park mother and wife Jane Bashara.
With black-rimmed glasses Gentz, with his attorney by his side, read from a statement he had prepared.
"Bob Bashara offered money to kill his wife and he threatened me," Gentz read.
Read more: Joe Gentz pleads guilty to Jane Bashara murder
Gentz told Judge Vonda Evans that Bob Bashara had threatened him to kill his wife and later paid him to do it. Jane Bashara was found strangled to death in her sports utility vehicle Jan. 24 in Detroit.
"You're also giving up the right to be presumed innocent. You understand that? Unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. You understand that?" said Evans.
Complete coverage: Grosse Pointe Park murder mystery
In exchange for Friday's plea deal, Gentz agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in their case against Bob Bashara. Bob Bashara has not been charged in connection with his wife's murder. However, early on in the investigation police had called Bob a suspect.
What does this mean for Bob Bashara now?
"You can pretty much bet the farm that (Bob Bashara) is going to be charged with murder in this case. He is going to be, realistically, be charged after the sentencing. They don't want anything to fall through on the plea. So, some time in February you can expect for him to be charged with murder," said Local 4 legal expert Todd Flood.
Jane Bashara was found dead in the back of her sports utility vehicle Jan. 24, 2012. It was parked in a Detroit alley. However, police believe she was killed at her Grosse Pointe Park home and someone drove her vehicle with her body inside to Detroit.