Gig Harbor Woman Sentenced To Nearly 14 Years For Trying To Hire Hit Man To Kill Husband

TACOMA –Today Karen Lofgren, 48, was sentenced to nearly 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to Solicitation to Commit Murder in the Second Degree.

Early last year the Gig Harbor woman  hired a “hit man” to kill her estranged husband. The “hit man” turned out to be a Pierce County Sheriff’s Detective working undercover.

“Hiring a hit man only works in the movies,” said Prosecutor Mark Lindquist. “All the defendant bought is 14 years in jail.” 

On January 23, 2012, Pierce County Sheriff’s detectives were contacted by a Federal Probation Officer who reported  that an offender under his supervision claimed he was propositioned by the defendant to help “get rid of” her husband. The defendant and her husband were going through a contentious divorce and she told the informant that her problems would all go away if her husband were gone. The defendant offered the informant $500,000, half of the one million dollar insurance policy, if he arranged to have her husband killed. 

Detectives set up covert surveillance and recorded several conversations between the defendant and the informant. He told her he had arranged for a “hit man” to come from out of state. They discussed how the death should look, ultimately agreeing on a “robbery gone bad” scenario.

On February 21, an undercover detective, posing as the “hit man,” met with the defendant. She gave him diamond earrings as a down payment for the murder, a photo of her husband, his physical description, and details of his daily schedule. Two days later Lofgren was arrested.

- Pierce County Prosecutor's Office