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It began with an anonymous message on an encrypted app: a “job” somewhere in the European Union, a payment of $60,000 in cryptocurrency, and a request for someone willing to kill.
Weeks later, the trail had reached Cyprus.
Eight people from three European countries have now been arrested in connection with an alleged murder-for-hire plot targeting twin brothers Jamie and Aaron Small, two former MMA fighters from Liverpool who had reportedly been holidaying on the island.
The case reads like the script of a crime thriller: an undercover Danish police officer posing as a hitman, an Irishman allegedly carrying an envelope of cash to Ayia Napa, suspected gunmen arriving from Sweden, and a pistol found alongside masks and disposable gloves.
But for Cypriot police, this is not fiction. It is a sprawling international investigation taking place in the same airports, resorts, and busy tourist areas used every day by residents and visitors.
According to reports, the alleged plot surfaced on August 10 when a person using the name “Sponge Jobb” posted an advertisement on the encrypted messaging service Signal. The message reportedly offered $60,000 in cryptocurrency for a killing inside the EU.
A Danish police officer, operating undercover, responded as though he were interested in taking the job. That exchange is understood to have triggered an international operation involving authorities in Cyprus, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland, and Britain.
Investigators reportedly say the undercover officer was sent photographs of the intended targets, along with information about pistols and ammunition allegedly obtained from Turkey.
The first arrests in Cyprus came on August 27, when police detained a 33-year-old Irishman and two Danish nationals. Authorities initially believed those arrests had disrupted the alleged plan.
Then Swedish police delivered a warning: a suspected hitman had arrived in Cyprus.
Police placed two Swedish nationals under surveillance before arresting them, along with three other Swedish men. A search allegedly uncovered a pistol, medical masks, and disposable gloves.
All five deny involvement and maintain that they came to Cyprus for a holiday.
The Irish suspect has also denied any role in a murder plot. His account is that he was paid simply to deliver an envelope containing €1,000 to a location in Ayia Napa.
Prosecutors reportedly take a different view, alleging that he acted as a link with the would-be killer and provided money during his stay on the island. Reports have also connected him to an Irish organized-crime group with historical links to the Kinahan cartel. Those claims remain allegations and have not been proven in court.
The two intended targets have now been identified as Jamie and Aaron Small. The brothers previously competed in mixed martial arts in Liverpool and are believed to have recently spent time in Cyprus.
Their present whereabouts are unclear.
Authorities have reportedly been trying to locate them since the alleged plot was uncovered. Police believe they were on the island but may have since left, while Merseyside Police has confirmed it is assisting its Cypriot counterparts because of the brothers’ links to Liverpool.
For people in Cyprus, the most unsettling part of the story may be how easily an alleged international operation appears to have blended into the island’s familiar tourist landscape.
The arrests may have prevented the alleged contract from being carried out. They have not, however, answered the case’s biggest questions.
Police must still establish who placed the advertisement, why the twins were targeted, whether the weapon recovered was intended for use against them and how each suspect was allegedly connected to the plan.
They must also find the brothers at the centre of it all.
For now, eight suspects are in custody, two intended targets are unaccounted for, and an online message offering cryptocurrency for blood has placed Cyprus at the heart of a European crime investigation.
