In brief
- A Brazilian woman was kidnapped because criminals wanted to target her crypto-trading son.
- Local media reported that her son had to pay about $600,000 worth of Bitcoin as a ransom.
- Such kidnappings, known as “wrench attacks,” are on the rise around the world.
Brazilian police have arrested four individuals after they allegedly kidnapped the mother of a crypto trader and held her for a ransom of over 3.3 million reais (over $600,000) worth of Bitcoin.
Local Brazilian media reported that the retired teacher was captured in March by a gang of two men and two women when she left a forum in Recife. The alleged criminals thought that she would have access to large crypto holdings after tracking her son’s activity on social…
Aug 16 2025
