Canadian crypto moderator ‘targeted in violent kidnapping’ over alleged Bitcoin fortune – report

A Canadian volunteer moderator of a crypto forum was reportedly targeted in an attempted kidnapping by individuals allegedly planning to torture him to steal his Bitcoin. According to the Canadian French-language news publication La Presse, the unnamed individual has gone into hiding with his family after encountering several people who reportedly threatened horrific violence before the family managed to escape.

The victim, who is said to own a small agribusiness, said: “The guys had equipment to torture me. They had a 2-foot by 2-foot tarp with a hole in the middle, and claws around it, to cut off a limb and stop the bleeding. It’s incredibly violent.”

The man said he and the children have “been moving from one Airbnb to another,” claiming that the police had told them that “they can’t ensure our safety.”

His account, supported by police reports and release orders, resulted in charges of conspiracy to kidnap, as well as possession and pointing of prohibited firearms, being filed against two adult suspects at the Victoriaville courthouse last November. Two minor suspects were also arrested in connection with the case.

The attempted kidnapping reportedly unfolded in two stages. On November 4, two masked men approached the victim’s home but fled when he shut the door. Days later, on November 8, suspects in a black Kia confronted him while he was with his daughter. Police managed to intervene, arresting all four suspects.

He claims that after an investigation, authorities concluded that the attackers were trying to kidnap him to force him to reveal the password to his cryptocurrency wallet. The man explained: “They apparently saw posts on a Facebook page that I’ve been moderating for several years, and they thought I had 2.5 million bitcoins. That’s far from the case. I’m a regular guy. I might have $10,000.”

Karachi: Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) officials are among those accused of kidnapping a man in Karachi and transferring Rs 130 million from his cryptocurrency account.

According to the local media, the victim was abducted on December 24 from the Manghopir area. The… pic.twitter.com/26dFCPhqDT

— Nida Khan Yousufzai (@NidaYousufzai) January 4, 2025

This recent incident comes amid an increasing number of robberies, kidnappings, and muggings involving cryptocurrencies over the past year. ReadWrite reported this week that a Pakistani trader was kidnapped, losing $340,000 in digital assets. Seven suspects, including a Counter-Terrorism officer, were arrested. Similarly, in November, Dean Skurka, President and CEO of Canadian cryptocurrency firm WonderFi, was reportedly kidnapped in Toronto and released following a ransom payment.

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