According to reports in local media in a small town in Connecticut, some residents have been receiving threatening letters that demand bitcoin as a form of ransom.
Police in the town are looking into the situation as to Farmington residents reported receiving what the media is calling “disturbing” letters demanding that the recipients hand over a certain level of bitcoin or risk one of their family members being killed.
The letters received give clear instructions as to how to open an account, obtain bitcoin and transfer from one wallet to another. On notifying the Federal bureau of investigation (FBI), it was revealed that similar letters have been received in a nearby region – Fairfield County – to 14 other Connecticut residences.
The offending 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.
- Open an account at any online Bitcoin exchange, such as Bitstamp.net or Coinbase.com
- 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.
- 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.
- Withdrawal all Bitcoin you purchased to the following Bitcoin address: 19vcdWcV4J8bhH7j3igHZ5q4WGT2UX5V2S
- 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”.
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You are finished. Breath easy, and live your life in peace knowing you will never have to deal with us again.
A look at the address on blockchain.info suggests that none have actually sent bitcoin to the address as yet. Have you receive one of these letters? Do you know anything about them? Let us know!
Images courtesy of CTVisit and Big Stock photo.
