A 69-year-old Lake County jail inmate faces a new felony charge after authorities say he tried to hire a fellow prisoner to murder a witness in his pending criminal case, WFTV first reported.
David John Butka was charged with solicitation to commit first-degree murder following an investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Unit, according to an arrest affidavit.
Investigators reported that Butka approached another inmate around Sept. 7 or Sept. 8 and asked him to kill a neighbor who was scheduled to testify against him. According to court records, Butka claimed he had roughly $1.3 million in the bank and offered to pay $5,000 up front to have the person killed. Deputies said Butka gave the inmate the target’s first name, physical description, daily morning routine, and directions to find the home.
To make the down payment, Butka completed an official Lake County Sheriff’s Office property release form that allowed his personal credit card to be handed over to the other inmate’s wife, the affidavit states. Authorities said Butka authorized the inmate to charge $5,000 to the card. Records show the woman picked up the card from the jail, after which $300 was transferred from Butka’s credit card directly into the inmate’s commissary account.
The alleged plot unraveled when another prisoner asked whether the hit was actually going to happen, leading Butka to say he had no intention of carrying out the killing, according to investigators. Another inmate then alerted jail staff about the conversation.
Detectives later obtained a handwritten note from an inmate that listed Butka’s name, phone number, and address, along with details about the victim’s home and a reference to “$5,000 up front off the card.”
When deputies spoke with the intended target, the person said Butka had a history of stalking and harassment that caused significant emotional distress. Investigators confirmed the individual had served as a witness in two earlier criminal cases involving Butka.
During a police interview after being read his Miranda rights, Butka denied any murder-for-hire scheme. He acknowledged talking to the inmate about hiring a new attorney and said he had authorized charging $2,400 to his card for legal fees. However, Butka told investigators he never approved releasing the card to the inmate’s wife, claimed he was the victim of fraud, and denied sharing any information about his neighbor.
Detectives consulted with the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office before formally booking Butka on the murder solicitation charge.
According to WFTV, court records show Butka was originally jailed in July on an aggravated assault charge after a neighbor reported that Butka threw a rock at his pickup truck during an argument. The driver told deputies he heard an object strike his truck and feared being hit through an open window, an account corroborated by a witness. Butka told deputies at the time that he had not thrown anything and was only flying a drone.
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Article Source: Millionaire inmate in Florida tried to hire hitman behind bars to kill key witness, deputies say