A Chicago woman charged with conspiracy to kill her mother and put her body in a suitcase while vacationing in Bali nearly a decade ago pleaded guilty in federal court on Friday.
Heather L. Mack, 27, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Illinois to one count of conspiracy to murder a U.S. citizen in the 2014 death of her mother, Sheila A. Von Wiese, according to court documents. She was charged in 2017 with conspiracy to kill abroad, conspiracy to kill a US national and obstruction of justice.
Ms. Mack and her then-boyfriend Tommy E. Schaefer were both convicted in Indonesia of crimes related to death. Ms. Mack was released after seven years and returned to Chicago in 2021 where she remains in custody. Mr. Schaefer, who was sentenced to 18 years in 2015, remains in prison there.
The maximum sentence for conspiracy to kill a U.S. subject is life. However, Ms. Mack’s lawyers hope that a plea agreement they reached with federal prosecutors will result in a prison sentence of no more than 28 years and possibly less. The judge, who will sentence Ms. Mack on December 18, is not bound by the agreement.
Ms. Mack’s lawyers are calling for her to recognize the seven years she has served in prison in Indonesia; the public prosecutor disagrees.
Michael Leonard, one of her lawyers, said of Ms Mack’s reasons for accepting the plea deal: “In this case, a few counts had life in prison. “Obviously, if the judge accepts the limit we’re proposing – of 28 years old – the risks above that are eliminated.”
Relatives of Ms. Von Wiese released a statement after the plea hearing, saying they were “very relieved that the mastermind behind Sheila’s murder has admitted her guilt today,” The Associated Press reported.
“We will continue to be our sister Sheila’s voice throughout the sentencing process to ensure real justice is served,” they said.
According to court documents, in 2014, Ms. Mack, then age 18, arranged for Mr. Schaefer to travel to Bali using her mother’s credit card. Text messages revealed that the couple planned to kill Mrs. Von Wiese.
Mr. Schaefer beat and killed Ms. Von Wiese’s in the presence of her daughter, according to court documents, after which the couple fled the hotel, leaving the suitcase containing the body in a taxi.
In the days leading up to Ms. Von Wiese’s death, Ms. Mack told Mr. Schaefer that she planned to share some of her inheritance with him after her mother passed away, according to court documents.
Mr. Schaefer replied, “I can’t wait to get rich.”
Mrs. Mack was also pregnant at the time of her mother’s murder. Her daughter is now in the care of a relative.
Mrs. Von Wiese’s late husband and Mrs. Mack’s father, James L. Mack, was a composer who collaborated with famous musicians, including Nancy Wilson, Jerry Butler, and Tyrone Davis. according to The Chicago Tribune. In previous conversationsMrs. Mack had indicated that she had a strained relationship with her mother.
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