Scammers Demand Bitcoins in Exchange for Releasing 'Hostages'

Farmington Police are investigating after two residents received threatening and disturbing letters demanding Bitcoins in exchange for not killing a family member.

The letter detailed how to go about opening an account on a Bitcoin exchange. Bitcoin is a type of electronic currency that is exchanged through peer-to-peer networks. The coins are “mined” by having computers solve complex math problems. One Bitcoin is worth about $231 as of Jan. 30.

Police have contacted the Postal Inspector and the FBI. FBI officials notified police that they have received 14 similar complaints from Fairfield County as well. The letters were postmarked from Austin, Texas and Jacksonville, FL.

Farmington Police Lt. Colin Ryan urged residents who receive such letters not to follow the instructions and instead contact police.

Below is an excerpt from the letter:

“XXX you do not know who we are, but we have been tracking you and your loved ones for a while now. We know your schedules. We know where you all live and spend your time. We also know how to kill any one of you without being caught. Now XXX, don’t panic. This isn’t personal. You did nothing to deserve this. You were just one of a handful of families unfortunate enough to draw our attention. However, nobody has to die. Allow us to explain.

You have until 12:00 PM on February 13, 2015 to pay us $2,000. If you do not comply with that simple demand, the following will happen: we will kill you, XXX, or someone else to whom you are close. Or you can simply pay us the $2,000. To make the payment do the following.

1. Open an account at any online Bitcoin exchange, such as Bitstamp.net or Coinbase.com

2. Deposit $2,000 into that account. Do not wait until the last minute to do this. It will likely take you about a week to open an account, get it verified, and process the transaction.

3. Use the entire $2,000, minus whatever small fee the exchange charges, to purchase Bitcoins on the exchange. If you are unsure about the process of buying Bitcoins, google it.

4. Withdrawal all Bitcoin you purchased to the following Bitcoin address: 19vcdWcV4J8bhH7j3igHZ5q4WGT2UX5V2S

5. Be sure to type all 34 characters of that Bitcoin address in EXACTLY. It is case sensitive. The first character is a number “one”, NOT a lowercase “L”.

6. You are finished. Breath easy, and live your life in peace knowing you will never have to deal with us again.

Image via Bitcoin Wiki