Reps of former President Ronald Reagan are outraged over the online auction for a vial of his blood.

The 5-inch glass vial contains dried blood residue of blood which was taken from the President after an infamous assassination attempt in Washington DC in 1981.

On Tuesday afternoon, the online auction for the blood stood at £9,181 ($14, 483). The website PFC Auctions is hosting the sale, which ends on Thursday at 2 p.m. ET.

The blood sample was allegedly obtained by a lady who worked at Bio Science Laboratories in Columbia, Md. The lab processed the blood work for Reagan while he was treated at George Washington University Hospital after the shooting.

The Reagan Presidential Foundation have expressed outrage in response to the sale.

"If indeed this story is true, it's a craven act and we will use every legal means to stop its sale or purchase," executive director John Heubusch said in a statement.

"We've spoken to GW (George Washington) Hospital and are assured an investigation as to how something like this could possibly happen is underway.

"Any individual, including a president of the United States, should feel confident that once they enter into the care of a medical system their privacy and rights are held inviolable," he said.

The 40th President of the United States, President Reagan was shot at six times by John Hinckley Jr as he left the Hilton Hotel in Washington DC on March 30, 1981. Hinckley was later found not guilty by reason of insanity.

In a letter of provenance on the website, the seller claims: “The test tube and the lab slip that I have are for his blood work to be tested for lead on. The testing was completed and the test tube was sitting on my mother's desk.”

The seller says his mother came into possession of Reagan’s blood sample after she asked the director of her laboratory if she could keep the paperwork and test tube.

“At the end of the week, she asked the director of her laboratory if she could keep the paperwork and the test tube. The director of the lab told her no problem and really never gave it a second thought. It has been in my family ever since.”

The seller allegedly contacted the Reagan National Library about selling them the blood sample, but he says they declined and suggested a possible donation.

However, the seller is a fan of the president and suggested that "President Reagan himself would rather see me sell it rather than donating it".