Texas Influencer Given Maximum Prison Sentence for Attempting to Kill 3 People, Including Ex-Boyfriend, in Murder-for-Hire Plot

Texan influencer Ashley Grayson is set to serve 10 years in federal prison after attempting to pay someone for the murder of three individuals.

Grayson, 35, earned notoriety on social media with her online business and lessons offering to teach others how to turn their skills into courses as well, per a press release about the case issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Tennessee.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Tennessee district Reagan Fondren announced that Grayson was found guilty in the murder-for-hire conspiracy case on Monday, Nov. 18.

The press release states that in September 2022, Grayson offered to pay a Memphis-based couple to kill three people, including her ex-boyfriend. The other two intended victims included a woman who criticized Grayson on social media and a Mississippi woman who operated a similar business model. The convicted influencer suspected the latter person of creating fake social media profiles to criticize Grayson’s work.

The Tennessee U.S. Attorney’s office states that “each one of these killings had a value to Grayson of at least $20,000.” During a recorded video call between Grayson and the Memphis couple, the content creator asked that the Mississippi woman be killed as soon as possible and “offered an extra $5,000 for the murder to be carried out in the next week.”

Using police car photos from an unrelated incident, the couple convinced Grayson that they had unsuccessfully attempted the murder-for-hire plot. They demanded half of the promised payment and flew to Dallas to meet with Grayson and her husband. The Memphis pair received $10,000 for their fabricated “attempt.”

In July 2023, a grand jury in the Western District of Tennessee issued a “one-count indictment for Use of Interstate Facility in Commission of Murder-for-Hire” against Grayson and her spouse, Joshua Grayson,” reads the U.S. Attorney’s office press release. United States District Court Judge Thomas L. Parker gave Grayson the maximum sentence of 120 months in prison on Oct. 31, 2024.

“This was a twenty-first-century crime where online feuds and senseless rivalries bled into the real world,” said Fondren, as quoted in the press release. “The defendant tried to hire someone to murder a woman over things that happened exclusively on the internet.”

He continued, “Fortunately, no one was physically hurt in this case, but the victim and her family still felt a severe and emotional impact as the result of the defendant’s actions. The proactive response from the investigating agencies and our prosecutors prevented an even more serious crime from occurring.”