Brooksville Man Charged With Conspiracy To Commit Murder

Joseph Gerald Cifelli, 56, of 11064 Carol Drive, Brooksville, was arrested Friday by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office on three counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.

Cifelli had requested the aid of a confidential informant to hire someone to engage in conduct that would constitute murder in the first degree, a sheriff's report states.

The confidential informant had been approached by Cifelli on at least 12 occasions within the last month to either have the informant get him a .22 caliber pistol, or get him "someone in the business" to murder intended victims Charles Allen, Monica Pilkuhn and Orrin Baldwin, the report states.

The informant attempted to talk Cifelli out of his plans, but was unsuccessful, according to the report.

According to a controlled call recorded by the informant, Cifelli intended to hire a third party to commit murder on the three intended victims to satisfy a debt, the report states.

Cifelli instructed the informant to call back with a day and time to meet a third party away from his residence to finalize the arrangements, the report states.

Due to safety concerns for the intended victims, a sheriff's deputy contacted Cifelli on Friday, who agreed to meet with the deputy, the report states. After being read his Miranda rights, Cifelli admitted he conspired with a third party to kill Allen, Pilkuhn and Baldwin either by hiring another party to kill them or by obtaining a .22 caliber pistol and silencer to kill them himself, the report states.

Cifelli's bond was set at $50,000.