Another charge added in du Pont contract killing case

Wednesday, Oct. 6, 1999 | 11:04 a.m.

A federal grand jury has added a second charge against two people accused of participating in last year's alleged contract killing of a potential heir to the du Pont fortune.

Christopher Moseley, 59, of Centerville, Del., and Ricardo Murillo, 38, of Las Vegas each face an additional charge of using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire.

Both pleaded innocent Wednesday in federal court.

The original indictment, returned in September, charged both men with conspiracy. It also named a third defendant, Las Vegas resident Diana Hironaga, who pleaded guilty to the charge in May.

U.S. District Judge Philip Pro is scheduled to sentence Hironaga, 41, on Dec. 10. Moseley and Murillo are scheduled to go to trial Oct. 18.

Hironaga has agreed to testify against her two co-defendants in hopes of receiving something less than a life sentence.

Prosecutors claim Moseley hired Hironaga and Murillo to kill his stepson's girlfriend, Patricia Margello. Moseley's 70-year-old wife, Lisa Dean Moseley, is a direct descendent of the Du Pont Co. founder.

A change-of-plea hearing for Moseley was scheduled for Monday but was canceled after the parties failed to strike a deal.

"We thought we had an agreement, then both sides realized we didn't have an agreement," defense attorney John Fadgen said.

The attorney declined to elaborate, but he said plea negotiations are continuing.

If convicted, Moseley and Murillo face mandatory life prison sentences.