Tampa woman paid over $12,000 in bitcoin for murder-for-hire plot. She will now serve time
A Tampa accountant was sentenced to six and a half years in federal prison after she pleaded guilty to ordering the death of her ex’s spouse and paying over $12,000 in bitcoin.
DeAnna Marie Stinson, 50, will also have to pay over $11,000 in restitution to the victim and a $1,000 fine.
Stinson pleaded guilty to the murder-for hire plot on Jan. 19 in federal court in Tampa.
On June 24, 2021, Stinson used a dark website to order a hit man for a “quick hit in southern Florida,” according to court documents. Stinson included the name, address and picture of her ex’s spouse.
“Between June and July 2021, Stinson sent four additional orders and over $12,000 in bitcoin to effectuate the hit,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said in a news release.
Stinson also sent several messages asking for the job to be done quickly and offered a bonus for the prospective hit man to finish the job by a certain date, records show.
By July 31, the job had not been completed, so Stinson asked administrators to “reassign the job to someone who has a history of getting jobs done.”
After receiving a tip, law enforcement agents tracked her virtual currency exchange account, and an agent — in an undercover capacity — posed as a hit man.
Records show that Stinson confirmed she wanted the victim killed and sent additional bitcoin to the agent, so the agent could buy a revolver.
Stinson was arrested Sept. 23 in Pinellas County.
This story was originally published April 21, 2022 at 6:14 PM.
