Federal authorities are trying to get to the bottom of a bizarre case out of New Hampshire involving an animal sanctuary that is being tormented by a riddle-writing extortionist. The unsettling situation reportedly began around two years ago when the owners of the Rickety Ranch in the town of Hollis began receiving cryptic letters from an unknown author. These missives were written in rhyming text and demanded that they fork over $250,000 or else face dire consequences.
It would seem that the nefarious individual behind the letters was quite serious in their threats as they unleashed a reign of terror upon the ranch after their extortion attempt was rebuffed. According to authorities, a barn on the property was burned to the ground earlier this year and a truck parked next to the building was subsequently destroyed by the fire. More unnerving, however, has been a series of attacks on the animals at the ranch in which the unfortunate creatures were severely injured and, in some cases, outright killed.
More on this chilling story, including a snippet from one of the riddle writer's letters, at the Coast to Coast AM website.