A Florida story that seems destined to become the subject of a hastily assembled true crime documentary or a loosely fictionalized dramatization, or both, now sees two people being charged in connection with an alleged hitman hiring attempt targeting a child.
Per a report from regional Miami outlet WTVJ, Gamaliel Soza, 18, was arrested this week and has now been charged with conspiracy to commit murder after allegedly being seen discussing the three-year-old would-be victim in police-obtained text messages to Jazmin Paez, also 18.
In July, Paez was arrested and charged with solicitation of murder after police allege she tried to hire a hitman to target her toddler son using a previously-in-headlines parody website by the name of Rent-A-Hitman.
Soza, police allege, complained in texts about Paez’s son, at one point saying he would “think about coming back” if she took action. Later, Soza allegedly asked for proof when Paez told him she had left the child in the woods to either drown or be attacked by a bear.
Complex has reached out to the Miami-Dade Police Department for comment. This story may be updated.
Robert Innes, the owner of the satirical site in question (rentahitman.com), has spoken out about the case and others like it multiple times. Back in 2021, Innes told the Guardian the domain was purchased in 2005 and was intended to serve as “simply a play on words” related to web traffic.
“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not really a murder-for-hire type of guy,” Innes said in the interview, adding that he’s instead “more of a save-a-life type.” At the time, Innes estimated that his website had helped saved the lives of nearly 150 people.
