Investigators Sent Small Bitcoin Amount After Ransom Note in Missing Woman Case

Officials received a ransom note hours after an 84-year-old woman was reported missing from her Arizona home in early February. The note requested $4 million in Bitcoin by Feb. 5 and included accurate details about the woman's clothing and a damaged floodlight at the property.

The smaller payment did not produce additional leads, and the Bitcoin remained untouched. A follow-up message arrived on Feb. 6 from the same IP address. That message stated an apology for the woman's inadvertent death and requested payment for the return of her body.

The woman's family members addressed the ransom note in a public statement the following day, offering to pay for her return. The woman was later acknowledged as likely deceased in a subsequent family statement. The search has now passed the five-month mark.