The man claiming to be an accomplice in the murder of a Detroit marketing executive told authorities he was paid to kill the woman, a source close to the investigation told the Detroit Free Press.
Joseph Gentz, 48, walked into a Michigan police station on Tuesday and told investigators he had a direct role in the murder of Jane Bashara -- found strangled last week -- and that the woman's husband was also involved in the crime.
An attorney for Bashara's husband, meanwhile, claims the man's account of the killing is inconsistent and "something out of cheap pulp fiction," according to the newspaper.
Bob Bashara, 54, failed a polygraph test, according to police, and has been named a "person of interest" in his wife's killing, though he has not been criminally charged.
The latest twist in the case comes as investigative sources confirmed to Fox affiliate WJBK-TV they discovered a "sex dungeon" in the basement of a property owned by Bob Bashara. The alleged room, filled with whips, chains and a bed, sits beneath the Hard Luck Lounge in Grosse Pointe Park, the station reported.
Rebecca Delodder and others who live near the property told the station that Bob Bashara was often seen coming in and out of the basement over the past few years.
"Last summer to maybe a couple years ago there were people always going in and out down in that basement. Somebody told me he had an S & M thing going down there," Delodder told the station. "People dressed up. They would be dressed up in different black outfits ... A couple times there I saw somebody coming up out of there in the morning, but most the time it was kind of late at night."
Jane Bashara was found strangled Jan. 25 inside her Mercedes-Benz in an alley on Detroit's East Side, about eight miles from the upscale Grosse Pointe Park home she shared with her husband and children.
Bob Bashara reported his 56-year-old wife missing at around 11:30 p.m. on Jan. 24 after she failed to return home.
The woman's coworkers reportedly said she was last seen Tuesday after a meeting at Detroit Edison's downtown headquarters.
The Detroit Free Press reports that Bob Bashara was working at the Hard Luck Lounge around 5 p.m. on the night his wife was last seen.
A man, who one witness said resembled Gentz, met Bashara at the bar at around 7:30 p.m., a source told the newspaper.
Police have said they believe Jane Bashara was killed inside her home, according to multiple news reports.
On Wednesday, Bashara thanked all the supporters who have "shown their love and respect for my Jane."
"This is an unconceivable tragedy," he said at a news conference. "We have cooperated with law enforcement agencies and will continue to do so."
Jane Bashara worked as a marketing manager for an energy consulting company. She and Bob Bashara were married 26 years and had two adult children.
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Jane Bashara Murder: Sources Say Possible 'Accomplice' in Custody: MyFoxDETROIT.com
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