William Wiese, the uncle of Heather Mack, plans to file a petition in an Illinois court to ensure his niece and her boyfriend, Tommy Schaefer, do not get a penny from his sister’s $1.56 million trust fund. Mack and Schaefer are both imprisoned in Indonesia for their role in the brutal murder of Mack’s mother, Sheila von Wiese-Mack.
Months before von Wiese-Mack's death, she chose her brother to serve as trustee of the trust fund, which named her daughter as the sole beneficiary. Mack's own attorneys have attempted to allow Mack to access the funds ever since von Wiese-Mack was found dead in Bali.
Mack's uncle plans on filing the petition under the Illinois Slayer Statute, which is designed to prevent people from benefitting financially from a crime.
Meanwhile, recently released text messages allegedly between Mack and Schaefer show that the murder of von Wiese-Mack may have been planned out ahead of time.
During his trial, Schaefer testified that Sheila von Wiese-Mack was angry when she learned about her daughter's pregnancy and tried to strangle him, prompting him to fatally strike her with a metal fruit bowl. Prosecutors said Mack then helped Schaefer stuff her mother's body into a suitcase, which they placed in the trunk of a taxi.
According to Mack and Schaefer, the murder was unplanned. Federal authorities claim recently released text messages show a different story, however.
A federal affidavit, which was made public after the arrest of Schaefer's cousin last month, shows pages of text messages between Mack and Schaefer in the hours before the Aug. 12, 2014, murder. The cousin, 24-year-old Robert Justin Bibbs, was arrested on charges that he advised Schaefer and Mack on how to kill von Wiese-Mack.
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"Literally cant wait," Mack, 20, said in one of the text messages. She is serving a 10-year prison sentence in Indonesia, while Schaefer, 22, is serving an 18-year sentence. Their daughter, who was born in March, is staying in the prison with Mack.
Authorities claim Mack and Schaefer used a code phrase ("saying hi") in their text messages to refer to the impending murder of von Wiese-Mack. Shortly before the murder, Mack sent a message to Schaefer that said, "Theres no better time to say hi is there?"
In the next 37 minutes, a series of text messages between them appear to refer to the murder plot.
Schaefer: "Go with your gut baby. Just your gut. Of the room. I'll be outside! If u need me I'll hear it."
Mack: "How do you know. Just come here."
Schaefer: "Say a code name. I promise you heather. All you have to do g. Is get her weak. G no listen. I'll be standing by the door. Coming now."
In reference to Bonnie and Clyde, Schaefer later said, "Relax. Ur Bonnie. Do it."
Mack: "G i think i need you in here too. Okay ill try."
Schaefer: "Try your best. We got nothin to lose right now. Trust me baby. I got you. Can u wack her in the head with a big (expletive) pole."
Mack: "Where. Will she ko (knock out)."
"Yes."
Mack continues to ask Schaefer for help, but he does not relent, saying in a message, "No. Must knock her out. Must. Listen and shut the (expletive) up already ... Ur so stupid."
Minutes before von Wiese-Mack was fatally beaten, according to authorities, Mack and Schaefer exchanged their final messages.
"Let me just creep up. And wack her. Once I do it. She was drunk slipped and fell," Schaefer wrote.
"Okay just knock her out. Itll be so much easier," Mack responded.
