A 45-year-old woman has been arrested in the Netherlands on suspicion of involvement in an attempt to arrange the murder of a Rotterdam businessman through a dark web murder-for-hire website.
The arrest follows an investigation into records obtained from a dark web service that advertised contract killings but was actually operating as a scam. DutchNews reports that the woman was arrested after investigators examined an alleged murder order placed through the site.
Police have stressed that the woman is suspected of being involved in arranging the killing, but have not confirmed that she personally submitted the murder order.
Nearly $1,400 in Bitcoin Paid
The intended victim, identified by RTL Nieuws under the pseudonym “Jerom,” was the subject of a detailed murder request submitted through the service.
According to RTL Nieuws’ investigation, the person placing the order supplied the victim’s home address, a recent photograph, details about his alarm system, and information indicating that his elderly mother lived with him.
The client initially requested that the victim be burned alive and made clear that he should not survive.
After being told that such an attack would cost $9,000, the person reportedly asked how much it would cost to shoot the victim or cut off his arms and legs.
Nearly $1,400 in Bitcoin was ultimately transferred as a down payment, according to DutchNews.
Dark Web Hitman Service Was a Scam
Despite accepting cryptocurrency payments and advertising different forms of violence, the website was not actually connected to contract killers.
Instead, its operators collected payments from people attempting to commission murders without carrying out the attacks.
The murder targeting Jerom was therefore never executed. However, attempting to arrange a killing can still result in criminal prosecution even when the supposed hitman service is fraudulent.
RTL Nieuws notes that a man from The Hague was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2021 after attempting to arrange a murder through the same service.
Investigation Began With Hacked Dark Web Data
The current investigation stems from data obtained from the murder-for-hire website and later examined by journalists and law enforcement.
British security researcher Chris Monteiro previously gained access to information associated with the site and has collected records relating to hundreds of purported murder orders placed around the world.
According to RTL Nieuws, the operators behind the scam are believed to have earned more than €1 million while continuing to accept cryptocurrency payments from people attempting to commission attacks.
There are no known cases in which the website itself successfully arranged a contract killing.
At Least Seven Dutch Targets Identified
An earlier investigation identified at least seven serious requests to have people in the Netherlands killed through the service.
The intended victims were not primarily figures associated with organized crime. DutchNews reports that previous targets included ordinary residents such as a teacher, nurse, civil servant, and father.
Many of the apparent motives instead involved personal or relationship disputes.
Because investigators could not initially determine whether the intended victims remained in danger, information from the compromised service was ultimately provided to Dutch police for further investigation.
Police Have Not Confirmed Who Submitted the Order
The 45-year-old suspect was arrested on Friday and reportedly has no fixed residence.
Jerom believes the attempted killing may be connected to a contentious divorce and has expressed relief that police have now identified a suspect.
However, authorities have deliberately stopped short of saying the arrested woman was personally responsible for submitting the order.
Police currently describe her as being suspected of involvement in arranging the killing, while investigators continue working to establish exactly who placed the request, financed it, and participated in the alleged plot.
