In the last two years, Ashley Grayson went from lifestyle influencing on social media to being a convicted criminal. The former Texas influencer will spend the next ten years in prison, per the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Tennessee. Once released, she will also face three years of probation.
Grayson received her sentencing on Oct. 31, but the case is now picking up steam on social media for its bizarre details. A jury found the 35-year-old guilty in a murder-for-hire scheme in March 2024 after a week-long trial. Ashley’s husband, Joshua Grayson, was also on trial, but the jury acquitted him. Apparently, Ashley attempted to hire a couple to kill her ex-boyfriend and two alleged business rivals.
Details About Texas Influencer’s Murder-For-Hire Plot
At trial, prosecutors revealed that the scheme began brewing as early as 2021. At that time, Ashley was running an online business and had gained a following. That same year, she and another business owner from Misssissppi, who provided similar services, fell out. They had never met in person. However, afterward, Ashley suspected that the other business owner was creating fake profiles to trash her business.
The following year, Ashley allegedly invited a Memphis woman to Dallas to talk business. They had previously worked together. The woman and her husband flew to Texas the following month. At the meeting, Ashley Grayson allegedly offered them $60,000 to murder her former boyfriend, the Mississippi woman and a Texas woman who had shared negative social media posts about her.
On Sept. 10, 2022, the Memphis woman video-recoded a call in which Ashley urged the murder of the Mississippi woman. She even reportedly offered an extra $5,000 for the killing to take place within that week.
Here’s How Ashley Grayson Involved Her Husband
It’s unclear if the Memphis couple faced charges in the case, especially given that they accepted partial payment. According to the D.A.’s Office, they demanded that Ashley pay them $10,000 for attempting to kill the Mississippi woman. Ashley and her husband met with the murder-for-hire couple and paid them the money.
However, it turns out the couple had tricked the Graysons. They had sent a picture of flashing police lights to show their failed attempt. In the end, the photo was from an unrelated incident in Memphis.
It’s still unclear why Ashley put out a hit on her ex-boyfriend. Nonetheless, Grayson will have time to ponder, as her case is also not eligible for parole. Ultimately, no one was physically harmed by the plot. Acting U.S. Attorney Reagan Fondren said:
“This was a twenty-first-century crime where online feuds and senseless rivalries bled into the real world. The defendant tried to hire someone to murder a woman over things that happened exclusively on the internet. 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.”
