A Bloomfield woman facing charges that she paid a man to have her ex-husband, a Simsbury resident, killed pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday.

Tiffany Khalily Stevens appeared before Judge Joan Alexander at Superior Court in Hartford on Tuesday and, through her lawyer, pleaded not guilty to the charge that she paid $5,000 for the murder of Eric Stevens. Hope Seeley, an attorney with Santos & Seeley, P.C. in Hartford, is representing Stevens against the class C felony charges facing her. Seeley has not responded to inquiries about the case.

The couple filed for divorce in 2009 and are now involved in a custody struggle for their 7-year-old daughter. Tiffany currently has custody of their daughter and also maintains control of $50 million in holdings set aside for the custodial parent, according to the warrant. Both parents have attempted to paint the other as unfit to take custody of their daughter.

Simsbury Police were given an incriminating recording of Stevens discussing the purchase of prescription drugs and the murder of Eric Stevens, according to the warrant.