Published: November 10, 2009 12:49 pm      

Alford pleas entered for threatening informant

A Keavy couple entered Alford pleas in federal court late Friday they conspired to harm a confidential informant with law enforcement who helped facilitate the arrest of one of the defendant’s relatives.

Christina R. Denham, 33, and Brandon B. Pitman, 28, entered Alford pleas to the charges in the indictment that alleged they conspired to threaten to cause bodily injury to another person with intent to retaliate against that person for providing information related to the possible commission of a federal offense in January 2009.

An Alford plea is not an admission of guilt, but an acknowledgment there is enough evidence to convict the accused if the case went to trial.

According to court documents, Kentucky State Police arrested Denham’s aunt, Judy Wilder, for trafficking in a controlled substance last January. KSP used a confidential informant to make a controlled drug purchase from Wilder that led to her arrest.

The documents also showed Denham and Pitman left numerous threatening messages on the informant’s voice mail. Most of the messages threatened the informant’s life, including one in which Denham threatened to kill the children of informant’s ex-girfriend.

The informant turned the voice mails over to an Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent.

Pitman and Denham are scheduled to appear in federal court in London for sentencing on February 8. The maximum penalty for the offense is 20 years.