Shocking Murder-for-Hire Case: Tennessee Woman Sentenced for Hiring Hitman with Bitcoin

The Disturbing Case of Melody Sasser

A Knoxville woman, Melody Sasser, has been sentenced to 100 months in prison after pleading guilty to hiring an online hitman to kill the wife of a man she met on a dating website. According to court documents, Sasser paid nearly $10,000 in Bitcoin through the dark web site ‘Online Killers Market’ in 2023.

Melody Sasser was sentenced to over eight years for her involvement in a murder-for-hire scheme.

Sasser, 48, registered under the username “cattree” and communicated her request via the website’s administrator. She specified that the murder should appear to be a random accident and suggested planting drugs to avoid a lengthy investigation. Sasser claimed to have met the target's husband, DW, on Match.com, and expressed frustration when the job wasn't completed in her desired timeframe.

Tracking and Threatening

After two months of waiting for the hit to be executed, Sasser left threatening voicemails disguised using an app. She even tracked the couple’s movements through an exercise app called Strava, sending updates to the hitman about when the target would be out for walks.

Sasser's desperation led her to message the dark web administrator about the delay in the job, demanding answers about its progress.

Melody Sasser, around 48 years old, was linked to a disturbing murder-for-hire plot.

Law enforcement eventually uncovered a journal at Sasser's home detailing communications with various hitman websites, along with a stack of cash marked with a Bitcoin address. On June 7, 2023, she was indicted by a federal grand jury for using interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire. Along with her prison sentence, Sasser is also required to pay over $5,000 in restitution.