Canberra Dark Web hitman: woman allegedly offered $20k to have parents killed

Detectives (pictured) say a loving Canberra mum and dad had no idea their daughter had put a price on their heads.

Journalists from the UK foiled a Canberra woman’s online search for a hitman to kill her loving parents, police allege.

ACT police on Monday arrested and charged a 26-year-old woman with the attempted murder of her mum and dad, as well as inciting a person to murder and dishonestly appropriating $15,000 from them.

Neither the woman, of Fadden in the ACT, nor her prominent Canberra parents can be named for legal reasons.

The woman appeared briefly in the ACT Magistrates Court by video link on Tuesday morning, where her legal aid lawyer said she had a history of mental health issues and was at risk in jail.

A 26-year-old woman faced ACT Magistrate’s Court charged with the attempted murder of her parents.

Magistrate Margaret Hunter said: “These are serious offences”.

The woman did not apply for bail and will return to court later this month.

The UK journalists were researching a series about the Dark Web in October when they came across the ad and contacted Canberra police.

Outside court on Tuesday, acting Sergeant Elizabeth McMullen said the woman allegedly paid $6000 of the $20,000 sum she offered to have her parents knocked off.

“ACT policing acted very quickly to ensure the safety of the victims involved in this matter and we do not believe there’s an ongoing risk to their safety,” Sgt McMullen said.

“Police will allege she was motivated by financial gain.

“We believe that the woman sought out the website herself and she has made arrangements on that site ... and she’s then made a payment in relation to that agreement,” she said.

The police probe into the woman involved tracking her activity online and sifting through her bank records.

It culminated in the raid on her home on Monday.

Investigators concluded the website the woman used to advertise for a hitman was fraudulent, and believe there is no actual would-be hitman.

The site is no longer running, Sgt McMullen said.

Sgt McMullen said the woman’s parents had no idea there was a potential hit on them, or even that there was anything amiss with their daughter.

“When police spoke to the victims that were named as targets on the site, they were unaware that this had happened and they cooperated fully with us to provide information,” she said.

“This is a very unusual matter, the victims were very shocked and understandably concerned about the information that police had obtained.”