Man kidnapped his friend and stole $1.8 million in Ether from him
If you are into mining cryptocurrency, then you may want to be careful. With the value of Bitcoinย unexpectedly increasing this month, it is likely that you may have more enemies than friends!
According to the Manhattan District Attorneyโs Office on Tuesday, a New Jersey man Louis Meza, 35, has been indicted of kidnapping and stealing $1.8 million worth of ether, the cryptocurrency of the Ethereum (Bitcoin rival) network, from his friendโs cryptocurrency wallet at gunpoint.
The incident took place on November 4th when Meza had a meeting with his friend at his apartment. Meza called a car service for the friend after the meeting to take him back to his place. He lured the friend into a minivan, where a gunman demanded his house keys, his mobile phone, and the 24-word passphrase to open his Ethereum cryptocurrency wallet.
Meza then allegedly went to the manโs home and stole items, including a ledger and transferred $1.8 million in ether into his own account. While the gunman was collecting the man’s items, the victim was able to escape and dial 911, according toย Gizmodo.
โVideo surveillance later obtained from the victimโs apartment building showed Meza using the set of keys stolen from the victim to enter the victimโs apartment and then leave the apartment holding a box believed to contain the victimโs digital wallet. Additional records reveal that soon after obtaining the victimโs digital wallet, the defendant then transferred approximately $1.8 million in Ether to his own personal account,โ the DA said in anย official statement.
โHackers, data breaches, and fraud arenโt the only threats to an individualโs wealth,โ said Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. โThis case demonstrates the increasingly common intersection between cyber and violent crimeโthe defendant is charged with coordinating an elaborate kidnapping, armed robbery, and burglary to gain access to the victimโs digital wallet and the significant funds it contained. We can expect this type of crime to become increasingly common as cryptocurrency values surge upward.โ
Meza has been arrested and charged with Grand Larceny in the First Degree, Kidnapping in the Second Degree, Robbery in the First Degree, Criminal Use of a Firearm in the First Degree, Computer Trespass and other offenses. However, he has denied any involvement in the case and pleaded not guilty. He has been held on a $1 million bond or $500,000 cash bail. Authorities are still looking for his alleged accomplice whose identity is not publicly known.