Charges filed in alleged murder for hire plot

UPDATE: FOUNTAIN MURDER-FOR-HIRE PLOT
The case: Fountain police allege a teenager wanted his mother dead so he could steal her car and sell it on the Internet and use the money for his girlfriend's rent and breast augmentation, according to an arrest affidavit. The woman was assaulted Sept. 25 in her home in the 7100 block of Yampa River Heights when a man dressed in black "grabbed her, struck her on the head several times with a baseball bat and then attempted to drag her into the garage," the affidavit states.

The victim: Hyun Sook Weis, 42, scared her attacker away by setting off her car alarm, according to police.

The suspects: Nikita Weis, 18, and his girlfriend Sophia Alsept, 21. The men police say he hired are Brandon Soroka, 19, and Juan Antonio Velez Gonzalez, 18. Alsept told police they planned to shoot Hyun Sook Weis, then dump her body in a desert in New Mexico or Arizona, according to the affidavit.

What's new: Prosecutors Monday filed conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit kidnapping charges against the suspects, according to court records. They could face up to 24 years in prison on the most serious charge.

What's next: The suspects are due back in court for a preliminary hearing Monday, when prosecutors will present evidence to 4th Judicial District Judge David Prince. All four are being held at the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center on $50,000 bond.