A Florida mother was in a Pitt County courtroom Tuesday morning, facing charges of trying to convince her children to kill their paternal grandparents.
The judge told Leticia Silva her $5-million bond would not be reduced.
Silva opted for a court-appointed attorney to defend her in the case.
Silva's boyfriend and parents were at the first appearance, and told WITN the charges are based on a lie. The family would not elaborate without a lawyer present.
Deputies said in December Silva asked her children, two girls who are 7 and 9 years old, to kill their grandparents. The grandparents, Ramon and Maria Silva, live in Pitt County and have permanent custody of the children.
Deputies say the children revealed that their mother had mailed them a knife to be used in the scheme. They say the other girl was told to get a steak knife from the kitchen.
Detectives say Silva has a history of drug offenses and lost custody of the girls in April of 2007.
She is due back in court on March 21st.
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A Florida woman is accused of asking her children to kill her parents.
Leticia Silva of Lakeland, Florida is charged with four counts of first degree solicitation to commit murder.
Pitt County deputies say the grandparents, who live in Pitt County, have permanent custody of the woman's children.
Investigators say back in December Silva asked her children, who are under the age of 12, to kill their paternal grandparents.
Deputies say the children revealed that their mother had mailed them a knife to be used in the scheme.
They say in early February deputies began their case after the grandparents learned of the plot.
The 33-year-old woman turned herself in at the Pitt County Detention Center where she is jailed on a $5 million bond.
