The Wisconsin man accused of stabbing and critically injuring his in-laws after allegedly breaking into their home in December in unincorporated Will County near Crete now faces charges of solicitation of murder for hire, the Will County sheriff’s office announced Thursday.
Michael Y. Liu, 36, of Oak Creek, Wisconsin, has been held without bond in the Will County jail since Dec. 2 on charges for attempted first degree murder, home invasion, aggravated discharge of a firearm, residential burglary, aggravated domestic battery, aggravated battery and trespassing.
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The sheriff’s office said it was notified Jan. 13 by jail staff that Liu talked to several inmates about hiring a hitman to kill the witnesses in his case and offered to pay $20,000.
Detectives recorded Liu discussing the plot with other inmates, according to a news release, and one inmate convinced Liu that he had a friend who would carry out the killing for cash payment.
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The inmate told Liu the hitman would require an upfront payment of $10,000 and then another $10,000 after the killings, according to the sheriff’s news release.
If convicted, Liu could serve between 20 to 40 years in prison. Under the solicitation of murder for hire charge, Liu is being held on a $1 million bond, according to the sheriff’s office.
Dan Walsh, Liu’s attorney, and the Will County sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Liu is accused of stabbing his 68-year-old father-in-law and his 66-year-old mother-in-law Dec. 1 at their home near Crete. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Liu was scheduled to turn himself into custody at the Waukesha County Huber Detention Facility Dec. 4 for a domestic battery conviction from July and a violation of an order of protection complaint, according to the Will County sheriff’s office, which responded to the call.
Instead, Liu traveled from Wisconsin “in an attempt to enact revenge on his soon-to-be ex-wife’s parents,” police said.
The mother-in-law spent two days in the hospital, while the father-in-law was in the hospital for a week, prosecutors said.
