Some criminal organizations are yet to receive the memo — crypto is traceable — and could explain the recent string of crypto-related kidnappings, says Chainalysis CEO Jonathan Levin. 

Law enforcement has been increasingly successful at tracing stolen funds and crypto ransom payments, resulting in a “lot of arrests,” Levin said during the 2025 Consensus crypto conference, covered by Cointelegraph.

“For whatever reason, there is a perception that’s out there that crypto is an asset that is untraceable, and that really lends itself to criminals acting in a certain way,” he said. 

“Apparently, the know that crypto is not untraceable hasn’t been received by some of the organized crime groups that are actually perpetrating these attacks, and some of them are concentrated in, you know, France, but not exclusively.” 

Jonathan Levin (left) says criminals targeting the crypto industry should know that the funds are traceable and law enforcement can track them. Source: Cointelegraph

There have been two serious crypto-related attacks in Paris so far this month. On May 13, three assailants attempted to kidnap the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the co-founder and CEO of French crypto exchange Paymium. 

Earlier in the month, on May 3, Paris police freed the father of a crypto entrepreneur who was held for several days as part of a 7 million euro ($7.8 million) kidnapping plot. The attacks have prompted France’s interior minister to meet with crypto professionals and address rising security concerns. 

Last year, blockchain investigator ZachXBT sounded the alarm in October that he’d been receiving messages from multiple victims of crypto home invasion thefts in Western Europe at a much higher rate than other regions.

“The message needs to get out there that these payments are traceable and that these units within the law enforcement agencies have actually been very successful at holding some of those people to account in those kidnapping cases,” Levin said.

“And even if it’s not the people that are kidnapping those people, but actually going upstream to the organized crime groups that are orchestrating these,” he added.

Online streamer Amouranth was the victim of a home invasion in March 2025 when several armed assailants held her at gunpoint and demanded the keys to her crypto wallet, four suspects were charged in connection with the incident and arrested by law enforcement.

Crypto kidnapping “not such a profitable business”

Levin says he hopes organized crime takes a message from crypto robbers being arrested, specifically, that it’s “not such a profitable business to be in,” and in some instances, the ransom payments might even be recoverable.

“There is the ability to potentially recover some of those payments as well. I think that in general, the goal here is not necessarily the recovery of the money, but it’s holding those people to account,” he said.

However, despite law enforcement having some success in tracking down criminals targeting the crypto industry, Levin says the spate of offline robberies is still a “bleak” situation, and the industry should be taking extra steps to stifle theft as well. 

“People need to be very careful about what information is shared about them online,” he said.

Related: Teens kidnap Las Vegas man at gunpoint, stealing $4M in crypto

This year, there have been 22 recorded incidents of in-person crypto-related theft compared to 28 in 2024, according to a GitHub list created by cypherpunk and co-founder of self-custodial firm Casa, Jameson Lopp.

However, the number could be higher. A University of Cambridge study released in September last year found these so-called “wrench attacks” are often underreported due to revictimization fears. 

Additional reporting by Vince Quill.

Magazine: Bitcoiner sex trap extortion? BTS firm’s blockchain disaster: Asia Express

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ May 15, 2025 5:17 am