France arrests five over cryptocurrency kidnapping

LYON: French authorities have arrested five people on charges of kidnapping the father of an influencer and cryptocurrency entrepreneur, prosecutors said on Saturday (Jun 21).

In recent months, France has seen several kidnappings and attempted abductions targeting cryptocurrency businesspeople and their families, and authorities have been under huge pressure to act.

On Dec 31, 2024, five armed people attacked a man and a woman in their home in the eastern town of Saint-Genis-Pouilly near the Swiss border.

In exchange for their release, the attackers demanded a ransom from their son, an influencer living in Dubai, prosecutors said at the time.

When they did not receive the ransom, they abducted the father, who was found a few hours later in the boot of a car in the department of Sarthe, nearly 700km away.

The 56-year-old man had been “assaulted, doused with petrol and transported in the boot of a car”, prosecutor Karine Malara said in a statement.

His wife was found tied up at her home in Saint-Genis-Pouilly.

Five people were arrested on Tuesday as part of a criminal investigation.

They were taken into custody on Friday on charges including kidnapping, armed robbery and aggravated assault, Malara said.

The suspects are four adults aged 18 to 22 and a 17-year-old minor.