A bogus website set up by a resident of California helped prevent over 100 murders in the United States, Fox News reports.
The “Rent-A-Hitman” website, which appears to offer "customisable solutions for every situation," is being run by a man named Bob Ines who set it up back in 2005 “as part of a failed cyber-security start-up,” and who notified authorities about the requests he receives through the website.
In 2008, Ines reportedly received between 250 and 300 emails from people “seeking hitman inquiries, jobs, and even a date,” as the media outlet put it.
One such case involved a British woman who allegedly sought to have three family members killed who had supposedly cheated her out of her inheritance.
"That was really the first thing that prompted me to do something serious with the website," Ines said. "It's a $9.20 website that saves lives. It's become kind of a personal mission at this point."
While the website did attract the attention of the media, Ines noted that people still continue to use “Rent-A-Hitman."
"I don't think my clientele reads the news or watches the news. I think they're hell-bent on causing harm to others," he said. "It's been that way for years. People still submit service requests. It's amazing."
One of the more recent cases involved Wendy Wein, 52, from Michigan, who allegedly attempted to hire an assassin via the website to murder her ex-husband.
Wein reportedly pleaded guilty earlier this month and now faces up to nine years in prison on charges of solicitation of murder and using a computer to commit a crime.
Ines also mentioned that he also provides the website’s "clients" an opportunity to "back out before things get serious," the media outlet adds.