The couple in their late 50s were held at knifepoint and forced to transfer £800,000 in Bitcoin after three attackers wearing fake police uniforms turned up at their door
An urgent investigation has been launched after a couple was held hostage in their own home by ‘fake police’ and forced to hand over £800,000 in Bitcoin.
The couple – who are in their late 50s – were targeted inside their home in a western suburb of Paris and threatened at knifepoint by three men, who were wearing imitation police uniforms.
French media said the men had identified themselves at the door as police officers who were carrying out a raid, before barging their way inside.
They then threatened the husband with a knife and demanded he send €900,000 (£778,000) worth of Bitcoin to another cryptocurrency wallet.
READ MORE: Dangerous rapper taunts police in new video after escaping jail twiceREAD MORE: Magaluf ‘wolf pack’ who gang-raped British teen named and jailed for 73 years
The suspects then beat the couple and tied up the husband with the rope, eventually fleeing in a white van.
Once they had left, the woman freed her husband and alerted her neighbours, who called the police.
No arrests have been made following the incident in Yvelines on Monday. Prosecutors in Versailles said the case is being investigated by the Banditry Repression Brigade, a department of the French police dealing with organised crime often known as ‘antigang’.
‘Wrench attacks’ target wealthy cryptocurrency owners in France
The incident is only the latest to single out wealthy crypto users, with so-called ‘wrench attacks’ increasing by 75% last year to a total of 72 verified cases worldwide, according to cybersecurity platform CertiK.
France had the highest number of recorded incidents at 19, with Europe as whole making up around 40% of all reports.
A spate of kidnappings in 2025 saw David Balland, co-founder of the £1bn cryptocurrency wallet startup Ledger, held for ransom for two days in a Paris flat with his wife after being bundled into a van by four men wearing balaclavas.
The suspects cut off Mr Balland’s finger and sent a video to his business partner Eric Larchevêque, demanding money in exchange for his release.
He was eventually feed after a raid by a police elite tactical unit.
And just last month, six people were arrested after a 36-year-old court magistrate and her 67-year-old mother were held captive for around 30 hours in a similar ransom plot.
Police in Lyon launched a huge search involving 160 officers after the magistrate’s boyfriend received a message and a photo from the kidnappers demanding a ransom in cryptocurrency, threatening to mutilate both women if they did not comply. The mum and daughter eventually managed to set themselves free, alerting passersby by banging on a garage door.
Four men, one woman and a child were arrested in connection with the incident, including two who were attempting to flee across the border to Spain when they were apprehended.
