Crypto scams are very common in the industry. However, there are cases where crimes happen outside the online world. In a crypto kidnapping move, a group of people has allegedly abducted a magistrate and her mother, demanding a ransom payment in cryptocurrency. Subsequently, French authorities arrested six suspected individuals connected with the case.
A threat message sent to acquaintance caught the police’s attention
The partner of the kidnapped 35-year-old magistrate received a threat message and a photo from the kidnappers, demanding money in cryptocurrency in exchange for the victim’s release. The message not only demanded crypto but also included threats to mutilate the victims. This message has activated a group of 160 officers who joined the force to investigate the case.
According to prosecutors, the arrested suspects were certain that the magistrate’s partner, who has a startup crypto firm, might have enough crypto wealth, and kidnapping them would get a potentially large crypto ransom. This is a common tactic that all kidnappers who are eager to extract money use.
The criminals abducted victims and kept them in a garage in Bourg-lès-Valence for nearly 30 hours. In the absence of their captor, the two abductees cried for help, banging on the garage door. As a neighbor heard the noise coming out of the garage, the two women could escape from the captivity and inform the police.
Even before the neighbor’s intervention, police officers helped in searching for the captors and arresting them, which included a minor as well. The cops caught kidnappers from multiple regions. As of now, the police are finding the root source of the kidnappers and the main team behind this act.
Growing trend of crypto kidnapping
As said, crypto kidnappers are also growing in numbers like crypto scammers. In France alone, the government has reported multiple crypto kidnapping and sequestration cases. Some real documented instances of crypto kidnapping include Ledger co-founder David Blland, who was kidnapped for a €10 million ransom in cryptocurrency. In May 2025, a crypto entrepreneur’s father was kidnapped in Paris.
In France, kidnappers abducted a crypto trader and media influencer, believing that he had enough crypto wealth. However, the captors released the victim after they found out that he had almost nothing in his wallet.
In a crypto crime report by TRM Labs, Phil Ariss, Director, UK Public Sector Relations at TRM Labs, said, “Criminal groups already comfortable with using violence to achieve their goals were always likely to migrate to crypto.” He further added: “As long as there’s a viable route to launder or liquidate stolen assets, it makes little difference to the offender whether the target is a high-value watch or a crypto wallet.”
