A Pennsylvania woman is behind bars after allegedly conspiring with her boyfriend to murder a police informant he believed had helped put him in jail.
Amanda Lynne Zortman, 45, faces charges of first-degree criminal solicitation of murder, conspiracy, and criminal use of a communication facility, according to court records. She is currently being held at the Centre County Correctional Facility without bail.
Authorities allege that Zortman and her boyfriend, 63-year-old Mark Hackett, who is incarcerated on drug-related charges, devised a plan to kill the informant using a fentanyl-laced narcotic.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by WTAJ, Hackett believed a police informant had “set him up” and identified the individual. The couple reportedly discussed the matter extensively, with Hackett proposing a “solution to our problem.”
Investigators allege the pair planned to administer a lethal dose of drugs, commonly referred to as a “hotshot,” to the informant. Zortman also allegedly communicated with a “hitman” Hackett had met in jail, offering to pay $10,000 to carry out the murder.
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Court documents suggest Zortman promised to provide additional incentives, including a pound of methamphetamine and cash to cover the “hitman’s” bail.
The plot reportedly faced complications when the hitman requested bail payments in another county. Authorities claim the plan involved releasing the hitman, completing his stint at a halfway house or rehabilitation facility, and then delivering the fatal dose to the informant with Zortman’s assistance.
Zortman allegedly took “substantial steps to plan and facilitate the murder,” according to an affidavit cited by StateCollege.com.
Police interviewed the informant, who revealed that someone had broken into their home shortly after they moved out. This raised suspicions that an attempt to locate or harm them was underway.
Zortman is scheduled to appear in court on March 12 to face the charges.
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