A British model is alleged to have been kidnapped and offered for sale on the darknet by the “Black Death Group,” a shadow organization that facilitates human trafficking.

Twenty-year-old Chloe Ayling claims to have been lured for a modeling shoot to Milan, Italy, where she was then kidnapped on July 11 and taken to a location near the French border where she was said to have been held for up to six days before being released.

What happened during her time in captivity is not entirely clear. Some reports claim that she was offered for sale on the darknet, a shadowy part of the Internet reachable only with special software, for the equivalent of $300,000 in bitcoin, while other reports claim that this was a ransom demand sent to her agent. Ayling alleges to have been initially injected with the anesthetic ketamine when she was abducted. But it’s not clear how she knew it was ketamine and given it only remains in the bloodstream for up to 17 hours, it’s not clear how police have confirmed this fact.

The story gets even more fantastical. The kidnappers allegedly decided to let her go after discovering that she was a mother, complete with a letter in broken English, allegedly coming from Black Death Group, explaining that kidnapping mothers isn’t their thing and that they would let her go but she should make a payment of $50,000 in bitcoin to them within a month to ensure her ongoing safety.

Italian authorities have arrested a Polish man, identified as Lukasz Pawel Herba, in relationship to the kidnapping. Herba is said to have used his own name when arranging for Ayling to attend the fake model shoot where she was kidnapped and was arrested while dropping her off at the British consulate in Milan, returning her as promised.

Something odd

While the details may yet not all be published, there are some odd inconsistencies in the kidnapping for darknet story so far, over and above the others.

To start with, Lukasz Herba not only apparently arranged the fake model shoot, he is also alleged to have contacted Ayling’s agent, by phone, to make the ransom demand and yet was only arrested when he turned up at the British consulate. At no time did he try to hide his identity; does that sound like the work of a master human trafficking gang? Sexual contact is also alleged to have taken place between Herba and Ayling, although according to reports, Italian police are saying she was not raped.

But the weirdest thing about this case is the alleged involvement of the Black Death Group. The group has been accused of involvement in various illegal actives, including human trafficking on the darknet for years. A Motherboard story in 2015 details its existence and that it was allegedly selling people online. Various Reddit posts also discuss the existence of the group, with users claiming to have at least seen their darknet site.

But ultimately the strangest part about the alleged involvement of the Black Death Group is that it’s hard to fathom that a professional human trafficking ring that has operated without being caught for years could have been involved in this crime. Putting aside Herba appearing to be a bumbling fool, what serious group would be using bitcoin to make ransom demands in public?

Bitcoin is not anonymous and can be easily traced, making it a massive risk for any organization that doesn’t want to end up being caught. There are alternative cryptocurrencies such as Monero that are far more anonymous and any criminal organization with half a brain – and given it has never been caught, one can presume that Black Death Group qualifies — would know this.

This is not to say at all that Ayling wasn’t kidnapped. She may have been, but it’s highly unlikely that Black Death Group was directly involved. An educated guess is that if it happened, Herba and others involved may have used Black Death Group as a cover for their actions. After all, what serious human trafficking organization would wake up one day and decide to release someone because it found out she had a child? It’s more likely that Herba’s own conscience got the better of him.

Picture: Chloe Ayling/Instagram