Attorney in murder-for-hire case withdraws from counsel

☛ ER Attorney in murder-for-hire case withdraws from counsel
Chad Larsen, a Fortuna man facing trial in a foiled murder-for-hire plot, has a new attorney, as his former attorney withdrew from the case last week, citing ethical issues.

In another development, a plea offer proposed last week for both Chad Larsen and his father, Dennis Larsen, was withdrawn Monday, as Chad Larsen didn’t accept the deal, Judge Timothy Cissna said...

...Chad Larsen’s case dates back to early 2006, when he was arrested on suspicion of having sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old girl. Chad Larsen, who was 26 at the time, said he kissed and “fooled” around with the girl and tried to have sex, but said the two weren’t “physically compatible,” according to a probable cause statement for his arrest.

He was placed on two years probation after pleading guilty to the crime, but the probation was revoked in January of this year, as he allegedly committed more sexual crimes against another teenage girl.

It was this then-16-year-old girl that Chad Larsen allegedly told several inmates he wanted killed. He allegedly offered another inmate a payment plan of $5,000, a used car, a partnership in an outdoor marijuana grow, and free rent at his father’s Ferndale ranch in exchange for killing the alleged victim.

The murder plan relayed to then-inmate Carlton Wallace called for giving the girl tainted drugs and taking her to the Ferndale ranch, where she was to be placed in a hole and covered with cement. To show he was serious about going through with the plan, Wallace was to dig a hole on the property and receive a $500 down payment from Dennis Larsen.

Dennis Larsen allegedly left two new shovels beside the mailbox and cash in an envelope inside the box. When a parole officer, who went undercover posing as Wallace, later phoned Dennis Larsen and asked where the hole to bury the girl’s body was to be dug, Dennis Larsen said he wanted no further part in the plot, according to preliminary hearing testimony.

The Larsens remain at the Humboldt County jail on $1 million bail and have a trial confirmation hearing on Oct. 20.