Darin Schilmiller is an Indiana man who orchestrated the 2019 murder of 19-year-old Cynthia Hoffman near Thunderbird Falls in Chugiak, Alaska, by posing online as a wealthy suitor named “Tyler” and offering an Alaska teenager millions of dollars to kill. He is serving a 99-year Alaska state sentence for solicitation of murder in the first degree, with a concurrent 30-year federal sentence for production of child pornography.
The “Tyler” Catfishing Scheme
Schilmiller lived in New Salisbury, Indiana. Online, he built a fake identity as “Tyler,” a millionaire from Kansas, and used it to pursue a romantic relationship with Denali Brehmer, an 18-year-old in Anchorage. According to an FBI affidavit, he offered Brehmer $9 million to murder someone, and their text exchanges included what prosecutors described as rape fantasies and a fixation on child pornography. The two traded “I love you” messages for weeks before the killing.1Alaska’s News Source. Who Is Accused Killer Darin Schilmiller
As a condition of the plot, Schilmiller required the perpetrators to send him videos or photographs documenting the murder.2Anchorage Police Department. Homicide Thunderbird Falls The promised money did not exist.
Schilmiller’s interest in child sexual abuse material had surfaced before. FBI records from a 2018 investigation showed Harrison County, Indiana, had looked into a complaint from a California woman who said Schilmiller contacted her asking for images of infants. That case was closed with no action, and acquaintances later described his fixation on images of children as an “open secret” in his community.1Alaska’s News Source. Who Is Accused Killer Darin Schilmiller
The Murder of Cynthia Hoffman
Cynthia Hoffman, known as “CeeCee,” was 19 and had developmental disabilities. Her father called her his “right hand man.”3KATV. Man Who Thought He Would Be Paid for Killing Woman Learns His Fate
On June 2, 2019, Brehmer recruited two other teenagers. Caleb Leyland supplied his SUV, and Brehmer and Kayden McIntosh used it to take Hoffman to a remote stretch of the Eklutna River near Thunderbird Falls. McIntosh shot Hoffman, and her body was placed in the river.4Alaska Department of Law. Schilmiller Sentencing Press Release Prosecutors said Brehmer was in direct contact with Schilmiller as the kidnapping and killing played out.1Alaska’s News Source. Who Is Accused Killer Darin Schilmiller
Child Pornography Conduct
While the murder plot was underway, Schilmiller and Brehmer also coerced a minor victim into producing sexually explicit images. Brehmer took the images and sent them to Schilmiller by text.5Alaska’s News Source. Indiana Man Linked to Killing of Cynthia Hoffman Enters Guilty Plea That conduct became the basis of his federal case.
Arrest, Guilty Pleas, and Sentences
A federal criminal complaint was filed against Schilmiller on June 10, 2019, and he was arrested in the Southern District of Indiana. An indictment followed on June 18, 2019, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska, naming both Schilmiller and Brehmer. He initially pleaded not guilty at his August 7, 2019 arraignment, and the federal trial was delayed repeatedly, including an indefinite continuance tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.6CourtListener. United States v. Schilmiller
He ultimately pleaded guilty in both courts. In July 2023, he pleaded guilty in federal court to production of child pornography.7Anchorage Police Department. Darin Schilmiller Sentenced to 30 Years for Producing Child Pornography In August 2023, he pleaded guilty in Anchorage Superior Court to one count of solicitation of murder in the first degree, waiving his right to a jury trial. As part of that plea agreement, charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder were dismissed.5Alaska’s News Source. Indiana Man Linked to Killing of Cynthia Hoffman Enters Guilty Plea
99 Years in Alaska State Prison
On January 11, 2024, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Andrew Peterson sentenced Schilmiller to 99 years with no time suspended, the maximum available for the charge. The sentencing range had been 5 to 99 years.8Alaska’s News Source. Judge Sentences Indiana Man in Thunderbird Falls Murder Case to 99 Years Judge Peterson designated Schilmiller a “worst offender,” called the crime a premeditated “murder-for-hire” and an “assassination” committed “for the mere thrill of it,” and ruled that Schilmiller will not be eligible for discretionary parole until he has served at least 45 years.4Alaska Department of Law. Schilmiller Sentencing Press Release
30 Years in Federal Prison, Served Concurrently
On August 21, 2024, U.S. District Court Judge Ralph R. Beistline sentenced Schilmiller to 30 years in federal prison followed by lifetime supervised release. Judge Beistline called his conduct “predatory, perverted and sophisticated” and said he could not “think of anything worse” than what the evidence showed.7Anchorage Police Department. Darin Schilmiller Sentenced to 30 Years for Producing Child Pornography Under the plea agreement, the federal sentence runs concurrently with the 99-year state sentence.8Alaska’s News Source. Judge Sentences Indiana Man in Thunderbird Falls Murder Case to 99 Years
Where the Case Stands
Schilmiller is in the custody of the Alaska Department of Corrections, serving the concurrent state and federal sentences. Online court records indicate that as of mid-2025 he has appealed his 99-year state sentence.9Alaska’s News Source. Family of Cynthia Hoffman Appears at Hearing for Man Who Pleaded Guilty10Alaska’s News Source. Denali Brehmer Sentenced to 30 Year Prison Term for Child Pornography11Alaska Department of Law. Leyland Sentencing Press Release12Alaska Department of Law. McIntosh Sentencing Press Release