FBI: Woman Planned to Hire Hitman to Kill Someone Wearing Fur

Updated at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday

A Cleveland Heights woman has been charged with plotting to kill an unspecified person wearing fur outside the , according to information released by the FBI today.

Meredith Lowell, 27, is accused of posting a message on Facebook announcing that she was looking for someone “willing to kill someone who is wearing fur,” according to an affidavit released by the FBI. The original post stated she’d pay someone $830 to $850.

As a result of the post, the FBI began to investigate. Undercover agents sent messages to Lowell, first on Facebook then via email. The woman asked the agents to kill anyone wearing fur and described how she wanted the job done, according to the FBI.

“The amount of money I will pay will be $730. You need to bring a gun that has a silencer on it and that can be easily concealed in your pants pocket or coat. Do not wear anything that even remotely looks like fur. If you do not want to risk the possibility of getting caught with a gun before the job, bring a sharp knife that is at least 4 inches long ... I want the person to be dead in less than 2 minutes (under 2 minutes or 1 minute or less would be better.)

“ … I am paying you to kill one person wearing fur who is 12 or older (but hopefully at least 14 years old however 12 years old or older is fine.)”

She also stated she planned on getting caught after the murder was complete, according to the FBI, and mentioned her devotion to animal rights several times. The amount of money she could pay and the date she wanted the hit changed several times. 

She was charged with solicitation to commit murder, and appeared today in U.S. District Court in Cleveland. She is being held until her hearing Tuesday in U.S. District Court. The and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force investigated the case, according to a press release from the FBI.

Check back soon for more details.