On January 24th, 2023, a former doctor named Ronald Craig Ilg received 96 month (eight years) federal prison sentence for attempting to hire a hitman through the darkweb. Dr.Ilg intended that the hitman kidnap and assault multiple victims. He paid over $60,000 in advance to get the job done. Dr.Ilg is a rich doctor who understands that money can buy anything. However, he did not understand how to remain anonymous on the darknet and even made payments directly from Coinbase.

Hiring A Hitman On the Darknet: A Fools Guide

It’s almost certain that hiring a hitman on the darknet is one of two things; 

• A Honeypot: A fake website created by the police who.
• A Scam: There are no hitmen, just an admin with false promises happy to walk away with some free crypto. 

Although this may be true, it didn’t stop Dr.Ilg Ilg from trying to assault atleast two victims through the use of hitmen. Going by the username Scar215, Dr.Ilg contacted atleast three Darknet “murder-for-hire” website admins. The first messages were sent on February 23rd, 2021, where Dr.Ilg gave details on how he wanted a hitman to attack two individuals. An unknown individual handed over these messages to a news organisation. 

According to the criminal complaint laid; By April 5th, the News organization informed the parties involved and forwarded to the FBI transcripts of the messages soliciting a hitman. Dr.Ilg was promptly arrested as one of the victims laid charges immediately. But who were the two victims in question?

Victim 1: An Ex-Colleague

Dr. Ilg’s first message to the Darknet hitman-for-hire admin was to attack a woman who he had previously worked with. Although Dr.Ilg did not order an assassination, he did request the hitman physically assault her by breaking her hands.

The target should be given a significant beating that is obvious. It should injure both hands significantly or break the hands. 

Scar215

He later uploaded a picture of the woman in question and provided her identity by name and personal address. 

I believed that Dr.Ilg felt upset that I had received a promotion and a better position at an alternative hospital. I previously worked for ILG for several years but he didn’t like me. It’s possibly because he thought that I had something to do with a complaint that was filed against him.

Victim 1, His former colleague

The report shows that Dr.Ilg paid $1,984.45 in Bitcoin for the assault on Victim 1. Nothing in comparison to Victim 2

Victim 2 – His Wife

Perhaps the craziest part of this story is that Dr.Ilg paid nearly 60K in Bitcoin to physically kidnap, assault, extort, and even drug his estranged wife. The two were in the midst of a divorce battle. According to his messages, “The target destroyed two families and walked away as if she did nothing.” His goal for the kidnapping and assault of his wife was to have her return home. Should the hitman have achieved a few goals, he would have received multiple $10,000 bonuses. 

I need a rush job for next week. I need the target kidnapped for five to seven days. While being held she is given at least daily doses of heroin. She is also strongly persuaded to do a few things within two weeks. 1, stop ALL Court proceedings, 2, return to your husband and the chaos you created, 3. Tell absolutely no one about this. Also, the team should plant heroin and used needles with her DNA inside. After about seven days she is returned to her home…

Dr. Ilg using the alias “Scar215”

Dr.Ilg spoke to the vendor on the darknet hitman-for-hire website between  April 2 and April 8, 2021. The pair went further into detail on his fantasized outcomes of the process.

while being held; all means necessary will be done to get the following goals within 2 weeks of her release. First, cancel all court proceedings immediately. Second, return to the chaos she left with her husband and the 3rd party she invited into the house, and third, she will tell absolutely no one about her kidnapping and goals. 

Scar215

She should be told that her family’s health, including her father and her kids, depends on her completing these rules. It would be unfortunate if her older boy became addicted to heroin. Or her dad is severely beaten, or her dog is slaughtered. Any and all persuasion should be used. This needs to be done in two weeks

The following bonuses were provided should the hitman succeed:

• Permanently withdraw all court motions and all mediated agreements. Bonus $10K
• Return to your husband by asking to move back home AND fucking him at least three times within the 2-week time frame. Bonus: $10K
• Keep her mouth shut and tell no one, ever, about the kidnapping. Bonus $10K
• Inject her daily with heroin and teach her to do it, AND supply pics and videos of her injecting herself. $5K
• Plant drugs and used needles with her DNA in the needles throughout her home. Provide some pics of drugs and needles scattered around $5K.

Thankfully, the hitman-for-hire did not perform any attacks.

Capturing Dr.Ronald Craig Ilg

On April 5, 2021, just a few days before the attack was to take place, an international news organization contacted Dr. Ilg’s wife, who promptly contacted authorities. By this time, the only information the wife had to go off of was that the news organization was “tipped” by an unknown individual regarding the attacks. 

An FBI investigation was launched, and a warrant to arrest Dr.Ilg was issued. At first, Dr.Ilg admitted to using the hitman-for-hire service but explained he only planned to use it as a way to commit suicide and that he was hiring to kill himself. This way, his family could still claim life insurance and allow for a flow of Ilg assets to his then-current partner.

After further investigation, the FBI found Dr.Ilg’s login name and details written on a piece of paper hidden in a safe. His alias and password were “Scar215” and “Mufassa$$” The team then logged in to find all the messages and details regarding the attacks.

There’s no evidence to say whether he used Darknet markets as well.

The FBI also used Blockchain analysis to trace Dr. Ilg’s funds back to his Coinbase account, solidifying all the evidence. Coinbase was happy to comply, and the KYC information provided included Ilg’s phone number, email address, and social security number.

The amount of money Mr. Ilg paid to advance his schemes and his efforts to obstruct justice in this case indicate Mr. Ilg would stop at nothing to maintain control over his victims. Thankfully, the FBI learned of Mr. Ilg’s scheme and prevented him from following through on his plans to harm another doctor and kidnap his estranged wife. I am grateful to the tremendous investigative agents and Assistant United States Attorneys Richard Barker and Patrick Cashman, who spent significant time and resources to ensure that our community continues to be safe and strong, and that individuals who perpetrate violent and cyber crimes are held accountable.

U.S. Attorney Waldref

He went on to say

This case demonstrates that even the anonymity of the darknet will not prevent the FBI from identifying and disrupting individuals who are intent on engaging in criminal activity. I am thankful for our partnership with the US Attorney’s Office, which brought Mr. Ilg to justice.

U.S. Attorney Waldref the 

On August 10, 2022, Dr. Ilg pleaded guilty to two counts of transmitting threats in interstate. He finally received his sentence of eight years in prison and three years of supervised release on January 24, 2023. Included in the sentence is an order to pay a $100,000 fine and $25,000 in restitution.