Officials arrested an Army sergeant earlier this month for allegedly attempting to help his brother arrange a murder-for-hire plot, according to state police in Connecticut.
Sgt. Jeremiah Peikert, a soldier stationed at Fort Cavazos, Texas, was taken into custody May 2 and charged for his alleged role in the unsuccessful scheme from two years ago to recruit a hitman to murder four people, including two minors, police papers and court documents show.
While not the only alleged murder-for-hire plot involving a service member to be foiled in recent years, this case revolves around a scheme from 2022, when Peikert’s older brother Joshua — already incarcerated in Connecticut — allegedly asked his unnamed cellmate to solicit a hitman to carry out the plan, according to court documents.
“At no time did I have any intention of hiring a hitman or committing any violence,” the unidentified inmate later told investigators, according to court documents. Instead, he said he played along in the plot against an unnamed adult woman, her children and her boyfriend.
To arrange the plan, the cellmate shared that he told the soldier’s brother Joshua he would need $10,000 per person, plus a $500 “finder’s fee,” with half paid up front and the other half presented following completion of the crimes.
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Shortly after, Peikert reportedly transferred the initial $250 on behalf of his sibling to the anonymous inmate, who wrote to the adult female, would-be victim warning of the alleged plot, the court documents noted. She then contacted the police, who began investigating the incident, the documents added.
In December 2023, officials interviewed Peikert at Cavazos about his involvement in the alleged scheme, which the service member had discussed with his brother and the cellmate under the false pretense of it being a “construction job.”
He detailed the money transfers, the documents stated, contending that while he was aware of the true nature of the plot, he was reluctant to participate and did not know the kids would be involved.
Peikert is being held on a $500,000 bond, according to the most recent information released last week by Connecticut police. His brother has also been arrested and charged for the alleged crimes.
Jonathan is a staff writer and editor of the Early Bird Brief newsletter for Military Times. Follow him on Twitter @lehrfeld_media
