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Hitmen don't actually make their service readily available* like a pizza restaurant's website, and the ones who do quickly get caught - natural selection if you

Hitmen don't actually make their service readily available* like a pizza restaurant's website, and the ones who do quickly get caught - natural selection if you will. I haven't ever heard of a case of someone getting targeted by an online hit ordered through one of those websites, which you'd expect to if even a single one of them were actually legit. Which makes sense from an economic point of view - there's much more incentive running a (relatively inoffensive) scam and making boatloads of money, rather than risking lifetime jail and committing atrocities to make the same amount of money. As for ordering drugs, the legal consequences vary a lot depending on the country's jurisdiction. There's also such a thing as a priority list in law enforcement, and they presumably care a lot more about murders than drug use, so one will draw much more attention than the other. *Yes, readily available. There's nothing "dark" about a website that can only being accessible through special software, it's been a thing since the days of Usenet and BBS.

jpatokal 8y ago
Online drug dealers are similarly incentivized to sell oregano and baking soda, yet apparently there are plenty of real drugs being transacted as well, including quantities well beyond personal use. And it does depend on the jurisdiction: I'd wager that in (say) the Philippines and some parts of Central America a kilo of heroin would draw more police attention than a murder, unless the victim is well connected. And to be clear, I'm not saying murder for hire on the Internet is a thing; I'm just mildly surprised nobody seems to have done it yet, especially now that cryptocurrencies have pretty much solved the largest problem of how to get paid.
- lordnacho 8y ago
  There's probably a lot of people who think drugs ought to be legal, and that they're only avoiding an unreasonable law when they sell you drugs. There's probably a lot fewer people who think that about the hitman business.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- yawaworhtttt 8y ago
  Reviews and escrows are a thing in the drug world. Generally speaking everything with drugs is easier: -It's easier to manufacture your own drugs than commit murder -It's easier to go unnoticed by law enforcement manufacturing, selling or buying drugs than going unnoticed with murder -Enforcement authorities around the world are much more willing to cooperate with each other when it comes to solving murder rather than busting someone's MDMA lab -The market for drug consumption is much larger than the market for hitmen (fortunately!) and it's easier to reach out for the former audience rather than the latter -There are much more third parties willing to act as escrow for drug trade rather than hitmen services -There's a moral case to be had about leaving drug use alone (victimless crime and all that), as opposed to murderers or murder instigators which are universally reviled; there are much fewer people willing to engage in a hypothetical hitman market than there are with a drug market -A review system can actually work with drugs because of the large demand and relatively risk-free aspect for buyers; a good seller can quickly build a reputation, while a bad seller will get buried by bad reviews. Can you imagine a hitman customer writing an Amazon-style review over the person he had murdered? >And to be clear, I'm not saying murder for hire on the Internet is a thing; I'm just mildly surprised nobody seems to have done it yet, especially now that cryptocurrencies have pretty much solved the largest problem of how to get paid. There just isn't enough demand for it to be worth the risk and hassle. As I said, any hitman stupid enough to set up a front store is begging to be busted by undercover cops posing as "customers".
  - naasking 8y ago
    > -It's easier to manufacture your own drugs than commit murder Well that seems false. You literally need no equipment to commit murder. If you have no connection with the victim, it's even easy to get away with it with a few precautions. Drug synthesis is much, much harder. The rest of your points seem mostly sound. The low demand for murder services is probably the most pertinent reason for the difference.
    - yawaworhtttt 8y ago
      I was taking into account the human factor; most people are simply not willing to kill another human being in cold blood, whether it's sheer empathy or the risk of getting caught.
- phowat 8y ago
  Because drug users are much more likely to become returning customers, there is more money to be made on being legit instead of a scam.
jstarfish 8y ago
> I haven't ever heard of a case of someone getting targeted by an online hit ordered through one of those websites, which you'd expect to if even a single one of them were actually legit. Centralizing murder-for-hire is a good way to get caught, scam or not. I believe Kuklinski did it for a while but it's not a savvy way to go about your business these days. There have been more than a few cases of people putting ads for wetwork on Craigslist that were successfully responded to. There was even one bizarre case in which a teenaged girl put a successful hit out on herself. > Which makes sense from an economic point of view - there's much more incentive running a (relatively inoffensive) scam and making boatloads of money Not everybody is intelligent/skilled/capable enough for organized crime. To a lot of people, a mere $5000 is enough money to get caught up on their late rent, car payments and child support. Pull-trigger-get-5k is a simple procedure, moreso than running elaborate darkweb portals and fucking around with Bitcoin. Contract killing hasn't changed much over the ages. You don't need to retain a celebrity hitman, you just need to get in contact with some desperate nobody willing to do anything to make ends meet. Morality and ethics are luxuries for those who can afford it.

jpatokal 8y ago

Online drug dealers are similarly incentivized to sell oregano and baking soda, yet apparently there are plenty of real drugs being transacted as well, including quantities well beyond personal use. And it does depend on the jurisdiction: I'd wager that in (say) the Philippines and some parts of Central America a kilo of heroin would draw more police attention than a murder, unless the victim is well connected. And to be clear, I'm not saying murder for hire on the Internet is a thing; I'm just mildly surprised nobody seems to have done it yet, especially now that cryptocurrencies have pretty much solved the largest problem of how to get paid.

lordnacho 8y ago
There's probably a lot of people who think drugs ought to be legal, and that they're only avoiding an unreasonable law when they sell you drugs. There's probably a lot fewer people who think that about the hitman business.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
yawaworhtttt 8y ago
Reviews and escrows are a thing in the drug world. Generally speaking everything with drugs is easier: -It's easier to manufacture your own drugs than commit murder -It's easier to go unnoticed by law enforcement manufacturing, selling or buying drugs than going unnoticed with murder -Enforcement authorities around the world are much more willing to cooperate with each other when it comes to solving murder rather than busting someone's MDMA lab -The market for drug consumption is much larger than the market for hitmen (fortunately!) and it's easier to reach out for the former audience rather than the latter -There are much more third parties willing to act as escrow for drug trade rather than hitmen services -There's a moral case to be had about leaving drug use alone (victimless crime and all that), as opposed to murderers or murder instigators which are universally reviled; there are much fewer people willing to engage in a hypothetical hitman market than there are with a drug market -A review system can actually work with drugs because of the large demand and relatively risk-free aspect for buyers; a good seller can quickly build a reputation, while a bad seller will get buried by bad reviews. Can you imagine a hitman customer writing an Amazon-style review over the person he had murdered? >And to be clear, I'm not saying murder for hire on the Internet is a thing; I'm just mildly surprised nobody seems to have done it yet, especially now that cryptocurrencies have pretty much solved the largest problem of how to get paid. There just isn't enough demand for it to be worth the risk and hassle. As I said, any hitman stupid enough to set up a front store is begging to be busted by undercover cops posing as "customers".
- naasking 8y ago
  > -It's easier to manufacture your own drugs than commit murder Well that seems false. You literally need no equipment to commit murder. If you have no connection with the victim, it's even easy to get away with it with a few precautions. Drug synthesis is much, much harder. The rest of your points seem mostly sound. The low demand for murder services is probably the most pertinent reason for the difference.
  - yawaworhtttt 8y ago
    I was taking into account the human factor; most people are simply not willing to kill another human being in cold blood, whether it's sheer empathy or the risk of getting caught.
phowat 8y ago
Because drug users are much more likely to become returning customers, there is more money to be made on being legit instead of a scam.

jstarfish 8y ago

> I haven't ever heard of a case of someone getting targeted by an online hit ordered through one of those websites, which you'd expect to if even a single one of them were actually legit. Centralizing murder-for-hire is a good way to get caught, scam or not. I believe Kuklinski did it for a while but it's not a savvy way to go about your business these days. There have been more than a few cases of people putting ads for wetwork on Craigslist that were successfully responded to. There was even one bizarre case in which a teenaged girl put a successful hit out on herself. > Which makes sense from an economic point of view - there's much more incentive running a (relatively inoffensive) scam and making boatloads of money Not everybody is intelligent/skilled/capable enough for organized crime. To a lot of people, a mere $5000 is enough money to get caught up on their late rent, car payments and child support. Pull-trigger-get-5k is a simple procedure, moreso than running elaborate darkweb portals and fucking around with Bitcoin. Contract killing hasn't changed much over the ages. You don't need to retain a celebrity hitman, you just need to get in contact with some desperate nobody willing to do anything to make ends meet. Morality and ethics are luxuries for those who can afford it.