Ah, the eternal tale of the befuddled bandit, foiled by the most unlikely of heroes: an empty wallet! 😂 It seems the latest wave of crypto kidnappings in France has claimed another victim, but this time, the attackers walked away with nothing but a handful of dust and a severe case of embarrassment.
A 26-year-old TikTok influencer, no doubt a titan of the digital realm with a whopping 40,000 followers, was the latest target in this troubling trend. According to local outlet Europe 1, the poor soul was abducted late Friday night while returning home in Juvisy-sur-Orge, a residential commune in the southern suburbs of Paris. He was forced into a stolen vehicle by four men, and then reportedly beaten and tortured. Ah, the humanity! 😱
The attackers, no doubt convinced by the influencer’s online boasts of wealth, demanded a ransom of €50,000 in cryptocurrency to secure his release. But, alas, their quest turned out to be a wild goose chase when they realized that the influencer had little to no money in his account. With no ransom worth collecting, they let him go, no doubt with a stern warning to be more careful with his online posturing. 😂
A 26 year old TikTok influencer was kidnapped by 4 men in… you guessed it… France but was released after they realized he didn’t have as much money as he said he did online.
Fake PnL screenshots are never worth it 🤑
— Beau (@beausecurity) June 15, 2025
French authorities, no doubt tired of these crypto-related shenanigans, have handed the case over to the Organized and Specialized Crime Division. Just weeks ago, police rescued the father of a wealthy crypto investor and popular streamer who had been abducted and mutilated by captors demanding €7 million in crypto. One wonders if these kidnappers have a special fondness for the number 7… 🤔
Another such case involved the attempted kidnapping of the 34-year-old daughter of the CEO of the Paris-based crypto exchange Paymium, who was eventually rescued by her partner and bystanders. While the attackers fled in this case, investigators tied the incident to the same kidnapping network. Ah, the plot thickens! 🕵️♀️
Authorities say multiple arrests have been made in connection to the ongoing trend, and more efforts are underway to find others involved in the extortion scheme. Among those detained is a 24-year-old French-Moroccan national named Badiss Mohamed Amide Bajjou, who was recently arrested in Morocco and is suspected of masterminding several of the recent kidnappings. One wonders if he’ll be trading in his crypto for a nice pair of handcuffs… 🚔
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2025-06-16 11:36