Event Brief
Inmate Allegedly Tried to Hire Hitman to Kill Witness
By The BriefBrief · Sources (1)
Filed: Sep 21, 2026 at 3:00 PM ET
Summary: A 69-year-old Lake County jail inmate, David John Butka, faces a new felony charge after deputies say he tried to hire a fellow prisoner to murder a witness in his pending case. Authorities allege Butka offered $5,000 up front, provided the target’s details and directions, and used a sheriff’s office property release form to fund the down payment.
WHO: David John Butka, 69; Lake County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Unit; deputies; a fellow inmate; an alleged witness
WHAT: Butka was charged with solicitation to commit first-degree murder after authorities say he attempted to arrange a killing of a witness from inside the jail.
WHEN: Sep 21, 2026 at 1:06 PM ET
WHERE: Lake County, Florida
WHY: No specific cause was reported beyond the event itself.
How this brief is built: The BriefBrief uses multi-source information fusion to correlate reporting across sources, identify related developments, and continuously update a structured WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and WHY event picture. Pattern arcs, source analysis, and velocity indicators provide deeper analysis in our MI Console.
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