Monroe man allegedly schemed to have wife, daughter murdered

Published 6:00 pm Thursday, February 9, 2017

MONROE — A Monroe man is accused of trying to hire a hitman to kill his wife and 4-year-old daughter.

The 42-year-old made a first appearance in court Thursday. He is being held for investigation of criminal solicitation for murder, a felony offense that falls under the legal umbrella of domestic violence, court papers show.

The man reportedly sent the proposal in a text to his former boss, who contacted the authorities. It appears the message accidentally was sent to the wrong person in his contacts list.

Police allege the man offered to split a $1 million insurance payout and asked for the killings to look like “a robbery gone wrong or make it an accident.” He allegedly suggested a gun be used.

He reportedly told investigators that he had written the message to vent feelings over marital problems, but that he wasn’t serious. He claimed his daughter accidentally sent the message while it was saved as a draft on his phone.

His wife told police they had some money issues due to the man being out of work, but she was unaware of any other troubles.

The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office initially assigned detectives to the case, before it became clear the alleged crime occurred in Monroe police jurisdiction.

Detectives on Thursday had not yet confirmed who was the intended recipient of the text, or whether it was meant for a real person, Monroe police spokeswoman Debbie Willis said. They also planned to review the family’s insurance policies.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @rikkiking.