French police have reportedly made additional arrests in the case involving the kidnapping of a crypto entrepreneur’s father, whose finger was severed as part of ransom demands.
State-owned media outlet France 24 reported on Wednesday that several suspects have been detained, citing a source close to the investigation.
The number of crypto-related kidnappings has risen in 2025, with several incidents occurring in France. This surge has prompted crypto entrepreneurs to enhance their security, while French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has called a meeting to address the growing concern.
Suspects allegedly linked to crypto kidnapping
The exact number of arrests made on Tuesday remains unclear, according to a source cited by France24. Suspects can be detained for up to 96 hours without being formally charged.
The father of an unnamed crypto entrepreneur was held captive for several days at a private location, with kidnappers demanding a ransom of up to 7 million euros ($8 million). A police raid on May 3 freed the victim and led to five arrests.
Separately, on June 4, a man suspected to be a key orchestrator of recent crypto-related kidnappings in France was apprehended in Morocco. Additionally, French authorities arrested more than a dozen individuals on May 26 connected to high-profile crypto kidnapping cases in Paris.
A series of other crypto-related attacks in 2025
On May 13, Pierre Noizat—the co-founder and CEO of French crypto exchange Paymium—faced a bold daylight kidnapping attempt targeting his daughter and grandson.
In a separate incident in March, online streamer Amouranth was held at gunpoint during a home invasion, where armed assailants demanded the keys to her crypto wallet. Four suspects have since been charged.
So far in 2025, there have been at least 29 in-person crypto-related attacks, according to a GitHub list maintained by Jameson Lopp, co-founder of self-custodial firm Casa. This number is on track to exceed the 35 attacks recorded in 2024 and the 24 attacks in 2023.
However, the actual number of attacks could be higher, as many go unreported. A University of Cambridge study from September revealed that these so-called “wrench attacks” are frequently underreported due to victims’ fear of being targeted again. The study also found that perpetrators come from a wide range of backgrounds, including organized crime groups as well as friends and family members.
Thieves believe crypto is untraceable
At the 2025 Consensus crypto conference on May 15, Chainalysis CEO Jonathan Levin suggested that the rise in crypto attacks may stem from criminal groups still believing that crypto transactions are untraceable.
Kraken’s security chief, Nick Percoco, added in a June 5 blog post that many crypto users show a worrying lack of security awareness. He noted that the exchange’s security team observed a general absence of “basic situational awareness” and protective measures among attendees at recent crypto conferences.
