Trial Date Set For Man Accused Of Helping Plot Bali Murder
CHICAGO (STMW) -- A trial date has been set for the man accused of helping plot the sensational murder in Bali of a Chicago socialite.
Robert Bibbs is accused of aiding Tommy Schaefer and Heather Mack as they planned the murder of Mack's mother, Sheila von Wiese-Mack, in 2014. Schaefer and Mack have been convicted in Indonesia of killing von Wiese-Mack. Schaefer, 22, was sentenced to 18 years in prison for battering her to death. Mack, 20, was sentenced to 10 years.
U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer on Thursday set Bibbs' trial for Nov. 7 at a prosecutor's request. The judge also changed the terms of his bond to include drug treatment after his attorney acknowledged Bibbs has an issue with marijuana.
The 62-year-old von Wiese-Mack's body was found in a suitcase in the trunk of a taxi outside the St. Regis Bali Resort in August 2014.
The feds say Schaefer expected to put his hands on up to $11 million through Mack's inheritance. Bibbs, Schaefer's cousin, also expected to profit, federal prosecutors have alleged. Von Wiese-Mack took her daughter on an Indonesian vacation in August 2014, and Bibbs allegedly said he knew Mack wanted to attempt the murder there.
The criminal complaint filed against Bibbs included roughly five pages of typo-riddled text messages between Schaefer and Mack leading up to von Wiese-Mack's death. In the hours before the fatal moment, Mack allegedly told Schafer by text she "literally cant wait" for her mother's murder.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2016. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
