“$15,000.00 will save your life!” wrote the internet con artist in an e-mail to his victim. He had researched her every move, knew her family and most importantly, determined she was innocent. Although he had already agreed to “the hit”, he wanted to give her one last chance. Pay him this money and he wouldn’t kill her. Don’t pay and the hit goes down, tonight!

Sounds like something out of a bad novel, but it’s not. It’s the latest version of an e-mail scam surfacing and the District Attorney wants you to know about it. Citizens have reported receiving threatening e-mails from a con artist posing as a hit man hired to kill them. The e-mails instruct the victim to not contact law enforcement but to meet with the sender to pay him off. Once paid, the killer will reveal who ordered the killing.

“This is just a high tech version of an old scam,” explained District Attorney Phil Cline. “The sender is preying on one of our worst fears - death - as a way to steal. The DA’s office is sworn to protect the public, and the public needs to be aware of this latest scam. Any one who receives an e-mail like this is encouraged to not respond to the sender and to report the sender to their local law enforcement agency.”

For more information contact: Don Gallian, Assistant District Attorney, 733-6411