A woman who once ran for a U.S. Senate seat as a Republican candidate has been arrested in a murder-for-hire plot, Illinois authorities say.

The Pekin Police Department announced July 22 the arrest of Allison Salinas, accused of solicitation of murder. Her arrest follows a two-week investigation that began when officers received evidence of her alleged scheme.

Investigators did not release additional information about what led to her arrest. It’s unclear if formal charges have been filed.

In 2021, Salinas ran as a Republican for a U.S. Senate seat in Illinois. She considered herself a “Back the Blue girl,” with a focus on immigration, health care, infrastructure and education, according to WMBD.

Salinas, who organized a 2021 protest in Springfield against COVID-19 vaccine mandates, was ultimately sued the same year. According to court documents obtained by Edgar County Watchdogs, Salinas failed to pay campaign staff and did not fulfill payments for a campaign event.

She did not appear on the Republican primary ballot in 2022.

Salinas, 48, later became a business owner, operating the Busy Beez Bakery in Pekin, but five of her employees told WEEK-TV they were not paid for some of their work.

In an interview with the station in February, Salinas said she had “no problem paying anybody for work they’ve actually done,” claiming the workers engaged in time card fraud.

Weeks later, she announced she would be selling the now-closed bakery.

Salinas was booked into jail just after 5 p.m. July 22, records show.

Pekin is about a 70-mile drive north from Springfield.

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