College Student Accused of Soliciting Neighbor’s Murder for $500 After Initial Recruit Alerts Authorities

A student from a Colorado college finds himself in legal trouble after allegedly plotting to have his dorm mate killed, leading to his arrest.

Nineteen-year-old Jackson T. Keller was taken into custody and later released on a $50,000 bail from La Plata County Jail on January 29. The charge against him is solicitation to commit first-degree murder. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation, in collaboration with the Fort Lewis College Police Department, revealed in a press statement that Keller was accused of orchestrating a plan to eliminate a fellow student. Allegedly, Keller attempted to enlist the help of two different individuals, offering them money to carry out the murder.

According to the Durango Herald, which obtained the arrest affidavit, fellow student Kobe McGill, one of the individuals Keller purportedly approached, alerted authorities about the plot. McGill informed the police that Keller and his intended target were once friends, but their relationship had deteriorated significantly.

Both Keller and the student he allegedly targeted were part of the college football team and shared a dorm suite connected by a bathroom. McGill recounted that the targeted student began locking his door to prevent Keller from entering. On the evening of January 28, while McGill was with the teammate, Keller attempted to gain entry into the room, prompting a confrontation. An argument erupted, during which the student accidentally toppled Keller’s TV onto a gaming console, though no damage occurred. Keller then challenged the student to a fight, but when the student stepped into the hallway, Keller remained in his room.

McGill further reported that Keller held a pair of scissors as the other student exited and allegedly threatened that he “would stab anyone who entered his room with the intent to harm him.”

After the altercation, Keller allegedly asked McGill if he would be willing to kill the student, asking if he would “put a hat on him” for $500. McGill told police that he refused, but then Keller told him “never mind,” and that he knew someone else he could ask.

According to the affidavit, McGill was present when Keller received a FaceTime call from three men from Colorado Springs who had firearms. McGill told police he watched as Keller asked the men if they would “put a hat” on the student for $500. After they agreed, McGill told police he saw Keller complete the transaction on Cash App.

McGill quickly told the student what he had allegedly just witnessed, and both students notified school officials, who then notified police.

When police questioned Keller, he denied the alleged plot and said authorities could take his phone after he spoke to his father. Police said that while Keller was in the interview room, cameras caught him “quickly moving through apps on his phone” as he spoke to his father. Keller’s father told his son to stop talking until they got an attorney.

Keller was charged with solicitation to commit first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a weapon on college grounds. He posted $50,000 bail and was released from La Plata County Jail. His next court date is scheduled for Feb. 23.

Local CBS affiliate KCNC reported that a mandatory protective order was filed against Keller, ordering him not to make contact with the student or go anywhere near him.