"French authorities have arrested five suspects after a magistrate and her mother were held captive last week for about 30 hours in a cryptocurrency ransom plot, prosecutors said on Sunday. The arrests of four men and one woman followed the discovery on Friday of the 35-year-old magistrate and her 67-year-old mother, found injured in a garage in the south-eastern Drome department, the Lyon public prosecutor's office said."
"During a press conference later on Friday, the Lyon prosecutor Thierry Dran said the magistrate's partner who was not home when the pair were abducted overnight Wednesday to Thursday had a leading position in a cryptocurrency start-up. A massive police search involving 160 officers was launched after he received a message and a photo of his partner from the kidnappers demanding a ransom to be paid in cryptocurrency."
"The captors threatened to mutilate their victims if the transfer was not made quickly, Dran told reporters, declining to specify the amount demanded. The two women managed to free themselves and raise the alarm. They were rescued on Friday morning in Bourg-les-Valence without any ransom being paid, according to the prosecutor. French authorities have been dealing with a string of kidnappings and extortion attempts targeting the families of wealthy individuals dealing in cryptocurrencies."
Five suspects—four men and one woman—were arrested after a 35-year-old magistrate and her 67-year-old mother were found injured in a garage in the Drome department following about 30 hours in captivity. The magistrate's partner, who was not at home during the abduction, held a senior role at a cryptocurrency start-up. A police operation with 160 officers began after kidnappers sent a photo and demanded a ransom in cryptocurrency, threatening mutilation if payment was not prompt. The two victims freed themselves and were rescued in Bourg-les-Valence without any ransom paid. Authorities linked the case to a series of violent crypto-related kidnappings and extortion attempts earlier in the year.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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