An American ‘hitwoman’ in hiding after being exposed for a botched contract killing in England has been communicating with friends from her hometown in Wisconsin, telling them she’s trapped in a ‘sh*t show.’
‘Lot what are you up to?’ one male friend from Stevens Point messaged Aimee Betro, 44, on Facebook Thursday, sending her a DailyMail.com article featuring her picture and details of her involvement in a 2019 murder-for-hire plot.
The friend was even more surprised that Betro replied, while still on the lam in Asia after authorities announced that they were seeking to track her down.
‘Dude I saw, like wtf I don’t even know where to start with all the misinformation that’s said about me,’ she wrote him in a Facebook messenger exchange seen by DailyMail.com. ‘It’s a f**king sh*t show.’
‘I’m glad you are OK!’ the friend messaged back. ‘Do you need anything or can I help you somehow?’
American Aimee Betro has been accused of attempting to carry out an assassination in Birmingham, England in 2019
DailyMail.com spoke with Betro’s mother Jeanne Johnson in Stevens Point, Wisconsin about her daughter’s predicament
‘Idk dude,’ she responded, ‘I don’t think there’s anything you can help with but I really appreciate you reaching out,’ signing off with a red heart emoji.
The friend, who hasn’t seen Betro for about a year, told DailyMail.com that he’s just one of several hometown friends communicating with her about the failed murder plot.
‘I talked to her best friend today and that person said she talks to Aimee every day,’ he said. ‘She’s using her phone every day, she’s taking pictures out of her apartment window, snap chatting people all the time.
‘If police really wanted to catch her, they’d already have her,’ he added. ‘Just track her phone and have her.’
He claims that in these exchanges, Betro’s admitted to basic facts of the case. It’s unclear, however, what she’s disputing.
‘Aimee doesn’t say she had no part of this’ he said. ‘She acknowledges she was involved and all that. She just says some of the details aren’t right.’
One local who didn’t hear from Betro was her own mother, Jeanne Johnson, who lives in a trailer park in Stevens Point, 150 miles northwest of Milwaukee.
She had no idea about her daughter’s alleged crime until a DailyMail.com reporter showed up at her door Thursday afternoon and presented the article.
Betro (pictured in childhood) was raised by her mother Jeanne Johnson, who is now divorced from her father, who is spending time incarcerated on drug charges
Betro previously held a day job with the Milwaukee Brewers, which some said she seemed to like, but was reportedly fired from for stealing fans’ credit card information
‘I’m shocked,’ Johnson said, stepping onto her deck and trembling as she took drags from a cigarette. ‘I’ve been waiting for this day – either trouble or dead.’
‘What the hell was she thinking?’ she snapped as she read through the article.
In a stark warning to authorities, Johnson said: ‘She’s not dumb. She knows how to hide.’
Johnson is divorced from Betro’s father, Stephen Betro, who is currently incarcerated in Wisconsin on felony drug crimes and has spent much of his adult life behind bars.
The seemingly unassuming U.S. tourist allegedly led a secret double life as an assassin-for-hire, flying over from Milwaukee to kill boutique clothing store owner Sikander Ali on the orders of rival Mohammed Aslam, 56, and his son Mohammed Nazir, 30, a trial in the UK heard.
While in the UK from August to September 2019 she enjoyed what would otherwise appear to be a normal vacation, with almost hourly updates on Instagram showing her dancing at a boat party, visiting the London Eye and going to a music festival.
Betro was seen soaking up the sun on a busy Brighton beach and sipping margarita and mojito cocktails while catching up with friends.
She then documented her visit to Birmingham, where she shared a mocked-up photo showing herself in devil horns. The photo was posted on September 7 – the day before she disguised herself in a hijab before trying to gun Ali down outside a house in Acocks Green, a suburb of England’s second city.
Betro fled the scene when her gun jammed, but later returned in a taxi and fired three shots at the property.
This was a source of mockery for some of Betro’s old Wisconsin buddies.
‘This is a hunter area, and I’m sure she hasn’t hunted a day in her life,’ the male friend said. ‘As far as know, she’s never fired a gun. She’s the last person I’d ever think would be an assassin.
‘I mean, she probably didn’t even put a shell in the chamber the first time, I don’t know,’ he said. ‘Thankfully it didn’t go like she wanted it to because at least now there’s a snowball’s chance she might not be in that much trouble.’
Mohammed Aslam – one of the two men who were found guilty in a British court of conspiracy to commit murder
Mohammed Nazir – son of Aslam – was also found guilty of plotting to kill his father’s rival, boutique owner Sikander Ali
Johnson said she hadn’t seen her daughter in years. She knew Betro had an open identity theft case against her in Wisconsin. She also described the startling experience of having the FBI show up at her trailer a few years ago, quizzing her about her daughter.
The feds accused the daughter of sending an illegal package, and obtained a DNA swab from the mom, presumably to help the feds match it with Betro’s DNA as part of their investigation.
Johnson promptly messaged her daughter to ask about the package, and said her daughter replied curtly, ‘That’s none of your business!’
She now thinks this may all have been related to the 2019 investigation in Birmingham, England.
‘I never understood why she did what she did,’ she told DailyMail.com. ‘I thought she booked because of that ID theft case.’
She acknowledged that she did not have the most loving relationship with her daughter, and only heard from her recently when she sent her a Mother’s Day card from whereabouts unknown.
‘She’s a pretty girl, very intelligent, very outgoing,’ Johnson said. ‘I couldn’t get a word in edgewise.’
She said her daughter graduated in the top third of her class in high school and went to Mid-State Technical College. She eventually got an administrative job with the Milwaukee Brewers, which she seemed to love.
Betro, at the behest of the two men, allegedly disguised herself in a hijab and attempted to shoot Ali during a drive by of his house in Acocks Green, Birmingham some five years ago
Far from Birmingham (pictured), Betro remains for the time being on the lam in parts unknown, but may be headed toward Nigeria
But according to Betro’s male friend, she allegedly lost the job after she was caught using fans’ credit cards to pay for her own travel and hotels.
He said she’d often travel overseas, including to the UK and other countries where she’d attend concerts and raves. She would also promote bands and a couple years ago purchased electronic equipment to DJ events.
He’d known Betro for years. The two played on the same frisbee golf team, playing games across the state. They’d also get together for local keg parties where a couple dozen friends would gather around.
‘She’s never been anything but the nicest person in the world,’ he said. ‘I read the news and thought this can’t be right. It’s in every paper in the country now, so it must be true.
‘Honestly, if you put everyone in this town in a group and said which ones going to try to kill somebody, she’d be the last person I’d pick,’ he said. ‘I never even heard her yell at anybody.’
‘The longer she is on the lam, the harder she tries to get away, the guiltier she looks,’ he said. ‘She obviously has no idea what the hell she’s doing.’
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