Committing adultery? Visiting prostitutes? Getting some online porn? Have some other secret you’re keeping from your spouse?
If you’re doing any of these things (or a plethora of other things you don’t want your spouse to know) and you get a blackmail letter like the one described below, ignore it, Darien police advise.
Darien Police Department announced Thursday that a scam involving a blackmail threat for some unspecified “secret you are keeping from your wife” is being sent out with the recipient’s name in several spots. The letter says that the sender has proof of your secret, and it will be shared with your wife and her family and friends if you don’t pay the blackmailer.
The letter demands $3,500 in hush money, to be paid with Bitcoin, an online, digital currency.
The letters are being sent from out of state, aren’t hand delivered, and are going to a number of people in Connecticut and beyond.
“Through investigation, it’s been determined that the exact letter, with only the recipient being different, has been sent out to residents in several other cities both in Connecticut and Massachusetts,” Darien Police Lt. Jeremiah Marron said.
If you pay the money in Bitcoin, it can’t be traced, police say, so you’ll lose it.
At least one Darien resident received the blackmail letter and contacted police. After finding out that the same or similar letter is going out to so many others, the Police Department says you don’t even need to contact them if you get it.
Toss it out, ignore it and go about your (let’s hope non-adulterous, above-board and no-need-for-secrecy-from-your-spouse) business.
And you adulterers can go about your business, too. Somebody Upstairs will take that matter up with you at a much different place and time, where they don’t have blackmail.
Here’s the full text of the police announcement:
The Darien Police Department was contacted by a local resident who received a letter threatening “Blackmail.” The letter specifically stated, “I know about the secret you are keeping from your wife. More importantly, I have evidence of what you are hiding.” The letter then demanded that the resident “payoff” the sender with Bitcoin, an online digital currency system, in order to keep the secret.
The sender gives the recipient two options: Pay the $3,500.00 or ignore the letter and be exposed. Ignoring the letter will result in the “evidence” being sent to the recipient’s wife and her family and friends. The recipient’s name appears in several places in the letter giving the appearance that the threat is authentic.
PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THIS IS A SCAM. IF YOU HAVE RECEIVED ONE OF THESE LETTERS IN THE MAIL, DO NOT SEND MONEY. IF FUNDS ARE TRANSFERRED IN THIS FORMAT, THEY CAN NOT BE TRACED OR RECOVERED.
The Darien Police Department is advising residents to ignore letters of this type if they are mailed to you. Investigation has determined that these letters are being sent from out of state and are not hand delivered. Residents of other towns in Connecticut and in Massachusetts have received letters of this type. If you have received one of these letters, it is not necessary to contact the Police Department.