Russian police and security services have detained five men accused of kidnapping and torturing a 22-year-old cryptocurrency millionaire in the city of Ivanovo.
The gang ambushed the young tech specialist outside his home, forced him into a vehicle, and took him to a garage where they subjected him to torture. The attackers stole more than 84 million rubles after forcing him to surrender his digital crypto wallets, before ransacking his flat for foreign currency and equipment.
After seizing the funds and electronics, the kidnappers bound the young man and abandoned him in a nearby forest. The victim managed to untie his bindings, escape the woods, and alert emergency services.
Raid caught on camera
Irina Volk, the official spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, released operational video showing the armed capture of an active member of the gang. The footage captures tactical special forces officers using a crowbar to pry open a door leading onto the suspect's residential grounds, before tackling him to the floor and placing him in handcuffs.
Investigators from the criminal investigation department and the Federal Security Service, known as the FSB, located the suspects soon after the attack. Police revealed that the attackers came from several different regions of Russia and were executing a contract based on a tip-off. The victim told authorities that he did not know any of the men involved.
Targeted crypto extortion
Ivanovo, an administrative city located north-east of Moscow, has its regional policing overseen by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with domestic security and counter-gang operations handled in coordination with the FSB.
Cryptocurrency wallets rely on private digital keys to secure blockchain assets, making direct access credentials a prime target for violent coercion because transactions cannot be reversed once broadcast. Law enforcement agencies worldwide have warned of rising physical extortion rings targeting wealthy digital asset holders.
All five suspects have been remanded in custody as the criminal investigation continues.
