Two people from Grapeland, TX in Houston County are facing major federal charges after investigators claim that they traveled to Tyler to set up a "murder for hire" with a hit man who turned out to be a federal agent.

A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging a Grapeland man and woman with federal solicitation of murder violations.

According to the indictment, on Feb. 9, 2022, 44 year old Reynaldo Campos is alleged to have solicited a person he believed to be an associate of a co-conspirator, who was in fact an undercover federal agent, to murder a former associate of Campos. Campos discussed the intended murder with the agent on multiple occasions over the next several weeks.

On April 8, 2022, Campos and Pittman traveled together from Houston County to Tyler to discuss the murder.

The indictment went on to add that  the pair also came to Tyler to provide the “hit man” with a handgun to be used for the murder, and to provide the “hit man” with information about the intended target. On April 13, 2022, Campos and Pittman again traveled together from Houston County to Tyler to discuss the murder and to provide the “hit man” with approximately one gallon of Phenylacetone/P2P and a shotgun as partial payment for the murder of the intended target.

If convicted, the defendants face up to 10 years in federal prison.

A federal grand jury in Tyler returned indictments charging them with murder for hire and conspiracy to commit murder for hire; solicitation to commit murder for hire and conspiracy to solicit murder for hire; possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence; and felon in possession of a firearm. A grand jury indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.