QUINN Industrial Holdings (QIH) has been the target of a £200,000 extortion attempt, it has been claimed.
The Sunday Times yesterday reported that an anonymous email account was used to seek the money in return for ending the campaign of intimidation against the group and its directors.
The sender used the alias 'OmaghDemon' in a series of emails sent to the company.
It said correspondence was sent from a ProtonMail email account in Switzerland and it is understood the sender used specialist software to conceal their location and IP addresses,
The first emails were sent in September and demanded the payment in the cryptocurrency Monero to be paid to a virtual wallet, before demands were made for it to be paid in Bitcoin.
The sender offered a "final truce" in return for the payment and appeared to have access to inside information, including information on the spouse of one of the directors.
It was also reported that when the company did not comply with the ransom demand, emails were sent to the board which stated: "Flesh will burn. Tears will flow. Close QIH and get the hell out. The Eagle had landed".
In September, QIH director Kevin Lunney was abducted outside his home in Derrylin, Co Fermanagh and taken to a horsebox across the border, where he was savagely beaten.
The PSNI and Gardaí said they were investigating.
