'Hitman email' rings hollow, only thing at risk is money
GLADSTONE, Ore. – There are no shortage of email scams out there, but the latest one to make the rounds has some bite: a threat to kill the recipient.
Kody Odgers of Gladstone recently contacted KATU News to say he had received a threat on his life via email and that the sender wanted $10,000 to call it off.
Odgers said the FBI has gotten involved in the case.
The email threat says that someone has paid a killer $80,000 to murder the recipient – unless they send $10,000 to an obscure, overseas Western Union account right away.
The FBI says the scam has been floating around for about four years and has morphed into various forms over the years.
“I’d hate to be a little old lady getting this and thinking “Oh my gosh, there’s really someone coming after to get me”” Odgers told KATU News. The email warns the recipient not to contact the police or FBI.
Responding to the email typically results in robotic emails responses that include new threats and demands for payment.
Authorities said that because the email appears to originate overseas, you should forward it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center if you get one.
Local law enforcement only gets involved if the email originates inside the United States.
Experts say the only thing at risk from the scam is any money sent by those intimidated by the email.