The 2 Political Operatives at the Center of a New Jersey Murder Mystery

As Sean Caddle has now admitted, sinister plots were more than just idle fantasy to him.

In 2015, six years before Sean Caddle, a New Jersey campaign consultant, wound up at the center of the state’s most talked-about murder mystery, he began what seemed to be an unusual business venture. He called it Chainsaw Productions.

The entertainment company held movie screenings that year and was planning to stage interactive “horror environments.” One was named Slaughter Camp — “an immersive and electrifying overnight experience,” a Facebook post read.

As Mr. Caddle has now admitted, sinister plots were more than just idle fantasy to him: A year earlier, in May 2014, he had hired two men to kill a friend and colleague, Michael Galdieri.