E-mail scams take chilling turn with assassination threat

IT is a worrying new twist on the raft of scam e-mails which are sent every day.

Instead of offering an investment opportunity or pledging a share of a lottery win, an Edinburgh man has told how he received an e-mail demanding thousands of pounds to call off his assassination.

The e-mail, accompanied by a picture of a marksman, warned Stewart Dawson, 33, that “someone you call a friend” had “paid some ransom in advance to terminate you” and provided a Western Union address to wire the cash.

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Police said a number of people in the Lothians had been targeted by the scam and urged anyone who received the e-mail not to respond “in any form”.

Mr Dawson, who runs a DVD distribution company from his Morningside home, said: “I get scams in my inbox everyday but when I saw this one it gave me an eerie chill.

“I had to read it twice because I couldn’t believe what I was reading.

“I think people who are vulnerable or a novice to the internet may not realise it is a hoax.

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“People have been caught out with the ones that try to lure you in with the promise of money but this one has taken a much more sinister angle.”

Mr Dawson said he tried to track down the e-mail address through an online database of known fraud sites but drew a blank.

“That made me think it must be brand new,” he said. “It’s probably the easiest business to run, you write one e-mail, click a button and it spreads all around the world.

“The fraudster can just sit back and watch the money roll in.”

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“I hope people receiving them in future will now realise that it’s not a threat.

A spokesman for Action Fraud, a service run by the National Fraud Authority that helps co-ordinate the fight against scams in the UK, said: “This e-mail aims to create an intense level of fear and contains a threat of violence which is not the traditional kind of scam we see.

“Usually they offer great deals where you will ultimately lose your money.

A police spokesman said: “Lothian and Borders Police are aware of an e-mail scam where an unknown sender makes threats against the recipient’s safety unless a sum of money is paid.

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“These e-mails are hoax and should not be responded to in any form.

“Anyone who believes there is a genuine threat to their safety, they should contact police immediately.”