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Inset: Cynthia Hoffman (Anchorage Police Department). Background: Kayden McIntosh astatine his sentencing proceeding (KTUU).
An Alaska antheral volition walk astir — if not each — of the remainder of his days down bars aft helium and others were lured into murdering a woman by a antheral offering $9 cardinal who was really catfishing them and lived successful his grandparents' basement.
Kayden McIntosh, present 22, was sentenced Friday to 85 years successful situation with 15 suspended, meaning he'll walk 70 years down bars. He was the past of the six defendants to beryllium sentenced for bringing 19-year-old Cynthia Hoffman to a waterfall conscionable northbound of Anchorage successful 2019. Once there, she was bound with duct portion and McIntosh changeable her erstwhile successful the head. Her assemblage was dumped successful a river.
"Mr. McIntosh, portion not the ringleader oregon orchestrator, was an progressive subordinate successful the readying and enactment of Cynthia Hoffman to beryllium murdered and helium was afloat alert of the plan," Anchorage Superior Court Judge Andrew Peterson said astatine the sentencing, according to a courtroom study from the Anchorage Daily News. "There was nary rash oregon spontaneous determination oregon enactment successful this lawsuit by Mr. McIntosh, but alternatively a cold, calculated murder."
McIntosh pleaded guilty past twelvemonth to second-degree murder. The plea statement called for betwixt 30 years and 85 years. While Hoffman's household was hoping for the maximum punishment, the condemnation helium received was sufficient.
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"He's going to beryllium an aged antheral erstwhile helium gets out," Hoffman's uncle Don Hoffman told the Daily News.
McIntosh's lawyers reportedly asked for a 30-year situation sentence, saying helium was a "lost kid" who surrounded himself with the incorrect people. He apologized to Hoffman's family.
"I cognize that doesn't chopped it," helium said, per the Daily News. "I don't expect you to forgive me. I'm trying to instrumentality accountability for this."
The antheral down the crippled is Darin Schilmiller, present 27. Ahead of Hoffman's June 2019 death, Schilmiller had posed online arsenic a antheral named "Tyler" and offered Denali Dakota Skye Brehmer — past 18 years aged and purportedly Hoffman's "best friend" — $9 cardinal if she kidnapped and killed Hoffman and nonstop him photographic proof. Schilmiller pretended to beryllium a affluent antheral with fantasies of seeing a pistillate murdered.
Darin Mitchell Schilmiller (Alaska Dept. of Law) and Cynthia Hoffman (Anchorage PD)
In actuality, however, "Tyler," aka Schilmiller, was a broke, unemployed Indiana nonmigratory surviving successful his grandparents' basement. He pleaded blameworthy to 1 number of solicitation to perpetrate execution successful the archetypal degree, and besides a national complaint of conspiracy to nutrient kid pornography for asking Brehmer for kid intersexual maltreatment material. A justice antecedently sentenced him to 99 years successful situation with the anticipation of parole aft 45.
Brehmer pleaded blameworthy to 1 number of execution successful the archetypal degree. The justice sentenced her in February 2024 to the maximum word of 99 years with nary clip suspended.
Another defendant, Caleb Allen Russell Leyland, present 26, pleaded blameworthy successful November 2024 to second-degree execution and was sentenced to 40 years successful situation with 10 years suspended. Two different defendants were processed done the juvenile courts.
Prosecutors said Leyland, enticed by the allure of $500,000, gave Brehmer and the then-16-year-old McIntosh the car they utilized to instrumentality Hoffman into taking a travel to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough successful Chugiak, connected June 2, 2019, and past going connected a hike done Thunderbird Falls. There, Brehmer bound Hoffman with duct portion — each portion taking photographic impervious for her perceived benefactor.
Denali Brehmer enters a plea for the execution of Cynthia Hoffman successful an Anchorage tribunal connected Feb. 15, 2023. The unfortunate considered the suspect her "best friend."
As previously reported by Law&Crime, authorities archetypal arrested McIntosh successful transportation with Hoffman's death. Police said helium rapidly confessed to being 1 of Brehmer's accomplices successful the execution — but insisted Brehmer brought the gun.
"[T]he 3 of them agreed to duct portion each different and instrumentality photographs," Anchorage Police wrote successful a probable origin affidavit pursuing their interrogation with McIntosh. "[Hoffman] was bound by her ankles and wrists with duct tape. She besides had grey duct portion placed implicit her mouth. However, [Hoffman] started to panic. They removed the duct portion from [Hoffman's] rima and hands. [Hoffman] began to archer them she was going to telephone the constabulary and archer them they had kidnapped her and sexually assaulted her."
McIntosh said helium "blacked out," but remembered shooting Hoffman and tossing her successful the river.
Prosecutors had asked for a maximum word of imprisonment of 75 years with 25 years suspended for Leyland portion his attorneys asked for 35 years with 10 suspended. At sentencing, prosecutors said Leyland was conscionable arsenic culpable arsenic his co-defendants.
"He gave that assistance, and helium gave that assistance knowing what's going to happen," Assistant District Attorney Patrick McKay said, according to NBC affiliate KTUU. "The tribunal has already recovered this was a premeditated declaration killing."
In cruel irony, Hoffman's begetter died successful a motorcycle mishap connected June 2, 2024, 5 years to the time since his daughter's death. The household lamented some deaths.
"My niece's life's been taken, her begetter followed 5 years later, connected the aforesaid day, laid his motorcycle down," her uncle Robert Hoffman said, according to KTUU. "Now he's with her but helium died of a breached heart. We're present to spot this through. This is simply a tragedy. No substance what portion you play successful a crime, you're conscionable arsenic liable arsenic the 1 that committed it the most."
Leyland apologized to the Hoffman family, reportedly saying "I cannot spell backmost successful clip and I cannot alteration things successful the past. But I truly privation I did, nary of this would person happened."
Jerry Lambe and Alberto Luperon contributed to this report
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