After asking for a job at Rentahitman.com and receiving a down payment for a contract killing from an undercover FBI agent, a 21-year-old member of the Air National Guard in the US state of Tennessee is now facing up to 10 years in jail.
The US attorney's office in Nashville said on Thursday that Josiah Ernesto Garcia, 21, has been charged with "use of interstate facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire."
Garcia allegedly used the website in February to apply for contract mercenary labour, according to federal authorities. He boasted of being a skilled marksman with a variety of weapons and said he needed more money for his family. He went by the moniker "Reaper."
The criminal complaint describes Garcia as stating in a follow-up email, "I'm looking for a job, that pays well, related to my military experience (Shooting and Killing the marked target) so I can support my kid on the way." "What can I say, I enjoy doing what I do, so if I can find a job that is similar to it, (such as this one), put me in coach!"
It turns out that Rentahitman.com was a trap. It was developed in 2005 for a cybersecurity firm but was later changed into "a parody site" with fake testimonials and an application for "services," according to the authorities. After receiving a request from the FBI, its owner, Bob Innes, replied to Garcia's email and assured him that someone would contact him.
Garcia eventually received a call from a covert FBI agent offering him $5,000, half of which would be paid up ahead, to assassinate someone. On Wednesday, he met with the contact at a park in Hendersonville, Tennessee, and was given the down money and an imaginary "target packet." Garcia was detained by the FBI when he enquired as to whether he needed to provide evidence of the act.
A second guard airman, age 21, was taken into custody on Friday. Jack Teixeiera, a Massachusetts ANG member, was accused of posting secret Pentagon information about the Ukraine crisis on an internet chat forum.
The US attorney's office in Nashville said on Thursday that Josiah Ernesto Garcia, 21, has been charged with "use of interstate facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire."
Garcia allegedly used the website in February to apply for contract mercenary labour, according to federal authorities. He boasted of being a skilled marksman with a variety of weapons and said he needed more money for his family. He went by the moniker "Reaper."
The criminal complaint describes Garcia as stating in a follow-up email, "I'm looking for a job, that pays well, related to my military experience (Shooting and Killing the marked target) so I can support my kid on the way." "What can I say, I enjoy doing what I do, so if I can find a job that is similar to it, (such as this one), put me in coach!"
It turns out that Rentahitman.com was a trap. It was developed in 2005 for a cybersecurity firm but was later changed into "a parody site" with fake testimonials and an application for "services," according to the authorities. After receiving a request from the FBI, its owner, Bob Innes, replied to Garcia's email and assured him that someone would contact him.
Garcia eventually received a call from a covert FBI agent offering him $5,000, half of which would be paid up ahead, to assassinate someone. On Wednesday, he met with the contact at a park in Hendersonville, Tennessee, and was given the down money and an imaginary "target packet." Garcia was detained by the FBI when he enquired as to whether he needed to provide evidence of the act.
A second guard airman, age 21, was taken into custody on Friday. Jack Teixeiera, a Massachusetts ANG member, was accused of posting secret Pentagon information about the Ukraine crisis on an internet chat forum.
