The post Armed Crypto Robbery in Thailand Ends in $250,000 Theft appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

A Ukrainian national, Viacheslav Leibov, fell victim to a rare case of crypto theft through physical coercion in Phuket, Thailand.  Armed assailants forced him to transfer 250,000 USDT, equivalent to 8.56 million baht, under the threat of violence. On November 11, four people were arrested in association with the robbery.  An Unusual Way of Stealing Crypto According to local reports, Leibov told local police that his ordeal began on Friday night when he visited his friend in his hotel room. Upon arrival, an Armenian man, Arman Grigoryan, 21, escorted Leibov to the room. Initially, the group engaged in conversation on the balcony. However, the situation escalated when Leibov went to use the bathroom. Two masked individuals ambushed him, binding his limbs with ropes and cable ties.  The robbers, armed with a hammer and knife, demanded Leibov transfer 500,000 USDT. Leibov negotiated to reduce the amount, transferring the 250,000 USDT as demanded.  After completing the transfer, the attackers tied him to a bed and warned him against reporting the crime. Once the assailants left, Leibov managed to free himself. He immediately rode his motorcycle and reported the incident to Kamala police. Police arrested four suspects associated with the robbery on Monday. One of the suspects regularly purchased crypto, more specifically, USDT, from Leibov. He has prior knowledge about Leibov holding large sum of stablecoins, which led to this plot.   The four men arrested for the crypto theft. Source: Khaosod The case highlights a growing concern about the physical targeting of individuals for their digital assets as crypto becomes more mainstream.  Crypto Crimes Are Becoming More Diversified With crypto adoption growing across most regions, the variety and sophistication of crimes are also increasing. There have been several occasions this year where criminals have used unconventional methods to steal cryptocurrency. The Federal Trade…

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Filed under: News - @ November 11, 2024 11:25 pm