Two 16-year-old teenagers are being charged with involvement in a kidnapping and armed robbery that ended with the theft of US$4 million in cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
The crime, which seems like a movie script, occurred in November 2024, when Belal Ashraf and Austin Fletcher ambushed a man who was returning from a cryptocurrency event in downtown Las Vegas.
According to court records obtained by local broadcaster KLAS 8 News Now, the suspects — both from Pasco County, Florida — waited for the victim at the door of his apartment, forced him into a car, and covered his head with a towel.
Teenagers Kidnap Investor and Steal R$20 Million in Cryptocurrencies in the USA
Armed, the young men threatened to kill the investor if he did not hand over the passwords to his digital asset accounts. They also claimed to be with the victim’s father, increasing the psychological pressure.
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The investor was taken for more than 112 kilometers, crossing the Nevada border to the desert region of White Hills, Arizona, where he was left alone in the middle of the desert.
He walked about eight kilometers until he found a gas station and was able to call a friend for help. The victim survived and gave a statement to the police.
The investigation revealed that a third teenager, not yet identified and who allegedly fled the United States, was also involved.
Police say the three were in contact with another possible accomplice by phone during the crime. Records showed that the vehicle used by the suspects traveled the route between Florida and Nevada, passing through the vicinity of the victim’s residence.
Attack happened after cryptocurrency event in Las Vegas; victim was threatened with a gun and left in the middle of the desert
The case took on new contours after the Las Vegas Juvenile Court decided to try the teenagers as adults. Austin Fletcher remains in custody on US$4 million bail, while Belal Ashraf was released to house arrest with an electronic ankle monitor.
Both face charges of kidnapping, robbery, extortion, and use of a firearm.
Reports from the school where the defendants studied were also attached to the case. They describe a history of aggressive behavior and episodes of disrespect for authorities, including an occasion when Ashraf allegedly assaulted a school official and yelled at an assistant principal.
This case adds to a growing list of violent crimes involving cryptocurrencies. In March of this year, for example, influencer Kaitlyn “Amouranth” Siragusa was attacked by four teenagers at her home, where she was also coerced into handing over her digital assets.
In France, the co-founder of cryptocurrency wallet company Ledger was kidnapped and released after a ransom was paid in bitcoin.
The preliminary hearing for the Las Vegas case is scheduled for June, and the FBI continues to assist in the investigations.
The episode raises an alert to the vulnerability of investors who expose their digital fortune and reveals how even teenagers can be enticed into sophisticated and dangerous digital crimes.
