A Texan woman's scheme to wipe out her love rival has landed her with a hefty nine years behind bars, as revealed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas. Michelle Murphy, 58, from Bedford, sought out a dark web hitman to eliminate her boyfriend’s other flame, forking over more than ten grand in Bitcoin to seal the deadly deal. But, fate had other plans—the virtual villain she paid turned out to be all talk and no action.
The digital breadcrumb trail was followed by blockchain analysis after Murphy pleaded guilty last December to the murder-for-hire charge, which snagged her in the act of converting cash into cryptocurrency through an ATM, not once, but at least three times. On July 27, 2023, Murphy transferred precisely 0.358 BTC—a bundle of Bitcoin worth $10,510—to what she thought was her hired gun's digital wallet.
Homeland Security Investigations didn't take long to piece the puzzle together, quizzing Murphy and her two-timing beau—only after reading her rights, of course. Murphy came clean about her web of lies: discovering an affair, she turned to the dark web to contract a digital hitman and wipe her romantic rival off the map.
At the sentencing, it appeared to both prosecutors and defense attorneys that Murphy's online assassin was never really going to follow through on the murderous mission. In a strange twist, frustration and vengeance drove Murphy into the arms of a possible swindler, netting her nothing but a future behind bars, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The investigation saw a joint effort with local Bedford, Euless, Grapevine, and Hurst Police Departments, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Weybrecht spearheading the prosecution.
Right on cue, U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman delivered Murphy’s sentence, marking the end of a bizarre and cautionary tale of love, betrayal, and the risky business of nefarious online dealings. Meanwhile, press officer Erin Dooley has been the point of contact for this twisted case, unraveling the dark web's false promises and digital heartache.
