A Fort Wayne couple threatened by people they believed were in the Mafia shelled out more than $1 million to make the threats go away.

In reality, police say, the money was paid to a middle-aged woman to whom the couple had rented a house in the mid-2000s.

That woman, along with her son and daughter, is now accused of extorting money from the couple using the same con over and over again until federal authorities stepped in this month.

This is a story that spans seven-plus years and at least two states; a story that played out through text messages purportedly sent by mob bosses in Philadelphia or Mafia families with hired hands ready to snatch family members at a moment’s notice; a story about hit men making people disappear and threats that they could do the same to others unless payments were made.

All of which were lies.

And now the woman and her two adult children, who investigators say are behind those lies, are behind bars, facing possible prison time in a federal penitentiary if they are convicted on charges of wire fraud.

Tenant relays threats

Everything began in 2007.

That’s when a Fort Wayne couple who owned several rental properties leased a Smith Street house to a woman named Kelly Jo Custer.

Shortly afterward, Custer began coming to the couple personally with threats. Not from her, though. According to court documents, she was just the messenger for a larger group that said the couple owed a debt.

That group: the Mafia.

Newly released federal court documents with details of the case do not say why the couple believed Custer or what she said to convince them that the Mafia had set its sights on them, but the documents seem to indicate that she made them believe they – or she – would be harmed unless payments were made.

They would pay Custer $3,000 to $10,000 at a time, and on at least one occasion, the couple paid her $50,000.

Eventually, the threats began coming to them by text from Custer’s phone, according to court documents, even after the couple moved to Florida at an undisclosed time.

That’s when they began wiring money to the tune of $250,000 to $300,000, they said in court documents.

The couple, who were not identified in those court documents, said they were bilked out of $1.5 million.

It wasn’t until March this year that they went to authorities, saying they were being extorted by the Mafia. By that time, they had been led to believe that Custer, now 53, had been killed in February by the Mafia.

Yet threatening messages still came from her phone.

Those messages were purportedly from Mafia members who were willing to kidnap the couple’s family members unless more money was wired back to Indiana – and they were messages that sparked law enforcement officials to set up a sting.

On April 7, the couple handed over their phone to an FBI agent and gave him full control over the device.

That day, another threatening message was sent to the phone from the number belonging to Custer. And again, whoever sent it claimed to belong to the Mafia.

About the same time that message was sent, officials with an undisclosed law enforcement agency were watching the Smith Street house the couple had rented to Custer back in 2007. They no longer owned the property, but it had been Custer’s last known address.

Officers spotted her there.

Very much alive.

Rising bounty

The message came April 14.

"I just received word (Mafia member) raised the bounty on my life to 2 mill please do something to get my money i need to leave the country please."

Again it came from Custer’s phone and was sent to the couple. And like he had done the week before, the FBI agent now posing as the couple set up a wire transfer – this one for $2,000, according to court documents.

Law enforcement officers were now watching Custer. Using "investigative techniques," they discovered that her phone was in contact with a phone known to be used by her 24-year-old son, Sidney Maurice Custer.

Afterward, officers watched Sidney Custer drive with his wife to a business that handles wire transfers.

They then watched his wife go inside and return with a piece of paper in hand; about the same time, Sidney Custer placed a phone call to his mother that lasted about 34 seconds.

Sidney Custer and his wife then drove to a Fort Wayne veterinarian hospital, where they met with Kelly Custer and her 25-year-old daughter, Ashley Nicole Custer.

While Kelly Custer and her son and daughter were at the hospital, the FBI agent sent a message to Kelly Custer asking if everything was OK. According to court documents, officers were watching when Custer pulled out her phone and texted back: "Just received thank you."

Mikey’s threats

Two weeks later, another message came from Custer’s phone, only this was from "Mikey," the "head of the Philly fam."

"Your debt has been turned over to me and we run things differant!" it said, adding threats to the couple’s family – even referring to the whereabouts of one family member – with the threat of force if they involved the authorities.

"Your debt is 30 I will make you a 1 time offer 5000 today and I will remove your debt from the black book if not you will pay 30 plus daily intrest of 500 a day!" the message said.

Later, when that message received no response, another came: "If you do not make contact by 10 tonite I will take it as your not taking me serious." The message ended with: "I no you sleep in panties and a t shirt! 10 tonite!"

On May 6, a text message from Custer’s phone indicated that one of the couple’s relatives had been kidnapped, although the family member was safe and sound. Eventually, the FBI had one of the couple – the husband – call Sidney Custer.

During the conversation, the husband told Sidney Custer that he and his wife had been paying money to the Mafia for some time to keep themselves and the Custer children out of trouble. He also brought up how he heard that Sidney Custer’s father had been killed by the Mafia.

That brought the conversation to an abrupt end, according to court documents, and prompted Sidney Custer to call his mother. Later, Sidney texted the couple’s phone, saying the Mafia was watching and it was not a good idea to talk.

That night, a threatening text from the Custer phone was sent to one of the couple’s family members, who was now supposedly suffering from a knee broken at the hands of the Mafia. "You need to make a pmyt today and he will get med attention!" the text said.

A week later, the FBI planned a $2,000 wire transfer. This time, they watched Ashley Custer pick up the money.

Springing a trap

This month, the FBI was ready to spring a trap.

The couple told whoever was on the other end of the Custer phone that they were traveling to Fort Wayne to borrow money to pay the increasingly threatening demands.

They then planned to drop the money off in a park, where whoever was making the threats could pick it up.

On June 3, a stack of marked bills totaling $2,150 was placed in a bank envelope and then wrapped into a Subway sandwich bag, according to court documents. Agents left the money in an undisclosed city park and set up surveillance.

The FBI agent posing as the couple then texted Kelly Custer’s phone about where the money was. At the same time, officers watched as Custer read the text at a local hospital while her two children stood near her.

Later, Kelly Custer texted the couple’s phone, asking to talk.

The husband of the couple made the call – she told him yes, she was alive, but that "Mikey," the Mafia boss, was there with her and that he and she would go get the money.

Instead, officers watched as she, Ashley Custer and Sidney Custer got into a car, drove to the park, picked up the money and drove away, according to court documents.

Later, Kelly Custer texted the couple again.

She was not in great health, she told them, that she had been through a lot and that the couple was to not talk about anything or ask about anything.

The text said full payment was expected when they got more money from their family, according to court documents.

It was likely one of the last text messages she sent them.

No bond

The FBI agent who detailed the case in court documents made sure to point out that not everything known through the investigations was put on paper.

At least, not yet.

The official story ends with the Custers picking up the money June 3.

It’s not clear where they were arrested, but officers moved in and took them into custody this week – on Wednesday, the same day a complaint was filed in federal court against all three of them.

They are being held in Allen County Jail without bail on felony counts of fraud by means of wire and radio communication and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, offenses that carry a maximum of 20 years in prison.

In jail, they do not have access to cellphones.

jeffwiehe@jg.net