diff --git a/code/modules/admin/verbs/adminpm.dm b/code/modules/admin/verbs/adminpm.dm
index 4856f5af32..ab0b0d933a 100644
--- a/code/modules/admin/verbs/adminpm.dm
+++ b/code/modules/admin/verbs/adminpm.dm
@@ -113,12 +113,6 @@
 			to_chat(src, "<span class='danger'>Error: Use the admin IRC/Discord channel, nerd.</span>", confidential = TRUE)
 			return
 
-	//clean the message if it's not sent by a high-rank admin
-	if(!check_rights(R_SERVER|R_DEBUG,0)||external)//no sending html to the poor bots
-		msg = sanitize(copytext_char(msg, 1, MAX_MESSAGE_LEN))
-		if(!msg)
-			return
-
 	else
 		//get message text, limit it's length.and clean/escape html
 		if(!msg)
@@ -133,11 +127,16 @@
 			else
 				if(holder)
 					to_chat(src, "<span class='danger'>Error: Admin-PM: Client not found.</span>", confidential = TRUE)
-					to_chat(src, "<span class='danger'><b>Message not sent:</b></span><br>[msg]", confidential = TRUE)
+					to_chat(src, "<span class='danger'><b>Message not sent:</b></span><br>[sanitize(msg)]", confidential = TRUE)
 					if(recipient_ticket)
 						recipient_ticket.AddInteraction("<b>No client found, message not sent:</b><br>[msg]")
 					return
 				else
+					//clean the message if it's not sent by a high-rank admin
+					if(!check_rights(R_SERVER|R_DEBUG,0)||external)//no sending html to the poor bots
+						msg = sanitize(copytext_char(msg, 1, MAX_MESSAGE_LEN))
+						if(!msg)
+							return
 					current_ticket.MessageNoRecipient(msg)
 					return
 
@@ -149,6 +148,12 @@
 	if(src.handle_spam_prevention(msg,MUTE_ADMINHELP))
 		return
 
+	//clean the message if it's not sent by a high-rank admin
+	if(!check_rights(R_SERVER|R_DEBUG,0)||external)//no sending html to the poor bots
+		msg = sanitize(copytext_char(msg, 1, MAX_MESSAGE_LEN))
+		if(!msg)
+			return
+
 	var/rawmsg = msg
 
 	if(holder)