Pretend Police Officers Held French Couple at Knifepoint in $1M Bitcoin Theft – Decrypt

Authorities within the Versailles space are looking for three suspects after a house invasion by which attackers allegedly posed as police and stole crypto.

A pair of their late 50s had been compelled to switch roughly €900,000 (about $1 million) in Bitcoin after three males posing as police entered their residence in Le Chesnay, close to Versailles, in line with French broadcaster TF1.

The suspects allegedly gained entry by figuring out themselves as law enforcement officials earlier than pulling a knife and threatening to stab the lady except her accomplice despatched Bitcoin to a pockets they managed, TF1 reported, citing sources near the investigation.

The Versailles public prosecutor’s workplace has confirmed the crypto theft, in line with native reporting, and stated the case is being dealt with by France’s Brigade for the Repression of Banditry (BRB). No arrests had been introduced at time of publication, with potential fees reportedly together with kidnapping, armed theft, organized crime, and felony conspiracy.

Wrench assaults in France

The theft matches an increasing sample of “$5 wrench assaults,” the place criminals use bodily coercion slightly than technical compromise to grab digital belongings. These instances have grow to be a rising safety concern for crypto holders as victims are focused at residence, usually after criminals have recognized doubtless victims by way of public alerts, leaks, or social engineering.

France has grow to be a hotbed of “wrench assaults,” which have included violent residence invasions focusing on crypto executives, crypto ransom calls for and the kidnapping and mutilation of Ledger CEO David Balland. Final Could, French police arrested 12 suspects linked to crypto kidnapping probes—however the crime wave reveals no indicators of stopping.