The father of an Alaska woman killed in a murder-for-hire plot in 2019 has died during a weekend motorcycle vigil marking the fifth anniversary of her death.
The Anchorage Daily News reported. Timothy Hoffman, 58, was pronounced dead after losing control of his motorcycle near Wasilla on Sunday, according to Alaska State Troopers.
The newspaper said that his wife, Barbara “Jeannie” Hoffman, the passenger on the back of the motorcycle, was seriously injured. Her wife, Tanya Chaisson, is engaged to Timothy Hoffman’s brother.
The couple’s 19-year-old daughter, Cynthia Hoffman, was killed in a fraud scheme involving Denali Bremer, who Hoffman considered to be her best friend.
Prosecutors said Bremer began an online relationship with Darin Schilmiller, an Indiana man who described himself as a billionaire from Kansas, and offered him $9 million if he would kill someone and send them photos and videos of the crime.
Hoffman’s body was discovered in the Eklutna River in Chugiak on June 2, 2019. She had been shot to death and was later found bound with duct tape.
Authorities said Bremer sent Schilmiller photos and video footage of the killing.
She allegedly recruited four friends, including Kayden McIntosh, Caleb Leyland and two minors, to help her carry out the murder.
The assailants lured Hoffman into believing he was meeting up for a hiking trip on the Thunderbird Falls Trail, then killed him.
Bremer was sentenced to 99 years in prison earlier this year. Schilmiller, of New Salisbury, Indiana, was also sentenced to 99 years in prison for his role in Hoffman’s death.
Schilmiller admitted to federal agents and Indiana State Police that he picked Hoffman as the victim and instructed Bremer to kill her, according to court documents. Two others connected to the case are scheduled to be sentenced later this year.
During court hearings, Timothy Hoffman often wore a black leather motorcycle jacket and was accompanied by his small service dog, Diego.
Patrick McKay, the lead prosecutor in several criminal cases related to Cynthia Hoffman’s murder, called Timothy Hoffman a “fierce advocate” for his daughter and said her sudden death was “too hard to believe.”
“I hope that Tim’s family and friends will find comfort in the knowledge that he passed away in memory of his loved one, doing something he loved, with the people he loved,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
