Instagram/Lake County Sheriff
Alyssa Michelle Hatcher is a Florida teen who is accused of paying two men to kill her parents in a failed murder-for-hire plot using money she had stolen from her mother and stepfather.
Hatcher, a 17-year-old high school student from Umatilla, Florida, was arrested on September 9, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said press release. Police have not named Hatcher’s parents, but Heavy has learned that her stepfather is a police officer in a neighboring city.
According to the sheriff’s office, a school resource officer at Hatcher’s high school learned from another teenager that Hatcher had paid a friend “a lot of money” to kill her parents. Hatcher’s boyfriend was also interviewed by police and he said he had seen Hatcher on the morning of Monday, September 9, and she told him she wanted to kill her parents.
“As the investigation progressed it was learned that the suspect Alyssa Hatcher solicited two different individuals to kill her parents,” sheriff’s office Sergeant Fred Jones said in a statement. “According to investigators the juvenile suspect stole her parents debit card and made two separate transactions withdrawing funds to pay the individuals to carry out the murder. The juvenile suspect was placed in custody and transported to the Lake County Jail where she was processed and turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice.”
Hatcher and her parents, Michael Scheller and Tammy Hatcher-Scheller, could not immediately be reached for comment by Heavy and it is not clear if she has hired an attorney who could speak on her behalf.
Here’s what you need to know about Alyssa Hatcher:
1. Alyssa Hatcher Is Accused of Using Her Parents’ Stolen Credit Card to Pay $503 & $926.40 to Men to Have Them Kill Her Parents
Alyssa Hatcher.
According to the arrest affidavit filed by Lake County Sheriff’s Office Detective David Causey, Alyssa Hatcher stole her parents’ debit card and used it to pay two different people to kill her parents. Causey wrote that he talked to Hatcher’s boyfriend who said he had seen Hatcher “at a known drug house” the morning of September 9, and she told him she “wanted to kill her parents.”
Causey said he talked to Hatcher, who admitted to paying one person $503 and a second person $926.40 after asking both to kill her parents, according to court documents. She withdrew money from an ATM to make one of the payments and sent the second payment via Paypal, according to police.
Hatcher told Causey that $100 from the first transaction was used to buy cocaine. She gave $400 to a friend to give to someone else to kill her parents, according to Causey. Causey wrote that Hatcher told him, “since the act was never carried out she gave the other $900 to a black male to kill her parents.”
It is not clear if anyone else will be charged in connection to the case.
Sheriff’s Sergeant Fred Jones told WOFL-TV, “This is a sad case when you think about the family dynamics and everything. I couldn’t even imagine something like that. Whether it was going to take place or not, the money did exchange hands and we’re glad we were able to stop what could’ve happened.”
2. Hatcher’s Parents, a Nurse & Police Lieutenant, Asked the Sheriff’s Office to Prosecute Their Daughter, According to Court Documents
Alyssa Hatcher in a Facebook photo.
Hatcher’s parents asked for charges to be pressed against their daughter, according to court documents. “The victims, parents of juvenile defendant, advised their intent to persecute for the charge of Criminal Solicitation of Murder,” police wrote in a court document.
Hatcher’s mother, Tammy Hatcher Scheller, is a nurse and a senior records clerk for the Florida Department of Health. Hatcher’s stepfather, Michael Scheller, is a lieutenant with the Clermont Police Department, about an hour south of Umatilla. They have been married since 2014, according to Mike Scheller’s Facebook profile. He has worked as a police officer since 1988.
“The parents are good people, outstanding citizens. This was just somebody, who for whatever reason, just didn’t want her parents around,” Lake County Sheriff’s Sergeant Fred Jones told WFTV. He said her motive is unclear.
Jones told WOFL-TV, “The parents did press charges. When it comes to something like that I cannot imagine the shock you would be in as a parent knowing that this is my daughter — what my daughter intended to do.”
3. Hatcher Was Born in North Carolina & Is a Senior at Umatilla High School & a Classmate Said She Was Shocked Because Hatcher Is ‘Such a Sweet Girl’ & ‘Very Caring’
Alyssa Hatcher in an Instagram photo.
Hatcher was born in North Carolina, according to court documents. It is not clear when she moved to Florida. She is a senior at Umatilla High School.
A classmate told WFTV-TV, “Her, of all people, that was very shocking to me. She’s such a sweet girl. She’s very caring. Whenever someone she sees is upset, she would run to them.”
4. She Plays Soccer & Has Been a Cheerleader
Alyssa Michelle Hatcher has been a cheerleader at Umatilla High School.
Alyssa Hatcher played soccer at Umatilla High School for the junior varsity girls’ team in 2018-2019, according to MaxPreps. Her Instagram profile also shows that she was on the cheerleading team at Umatilla High.
In June, Hatcher posted a photo on Instagram of her posing by a lake with the caption, “Ruthless?.” In another caption she wrote, “No beauty shines brighter than a good heart ?” She wrote along with another photo, “Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life ✨” and “smile and remember at the end of the day your blessings outweigh your problems ?”
Hatcher’s social media profiles provide little other information about her. She posts frequently about her boyfriend, including photos of them at prom together. Her mother commented on some of her Facebook posts.
5. Hatcher Was Charged With 2 Counts of Criminal Solicitation of Murder & Is Also Facing Theft Charges, Authorities Say
Alyssa Hatcher.
Alyssa Hatcher was charged with two counts of criminal solicitation of murder by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. She remains in custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice and it is not clear when she is scheduled to appear in court. She could face 30 years to life in prison on each of the solicitation of murder charges.
Hatcher was also charged with theft by the Umatilla Police Department for stealing her parents’ debit card, according to court documents.
It is not known if Hatcher has an attorney.
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