Brazilian Mom Held for Bitcoin Ransom After Alleged Kidnappers Stalk Crypto-Trading Son

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 media.

Brazilian investigators told local media that after looking at her son’s online posts, the alleged attackers were able to determine where she lived. After kidnapping the victim, the four attackers then held her at gunpoint for 12 hours until her son, based in Portugal, sent over 5 BTC, local media added.

Bitcoin was recently trading at over $117,301, virtually unmoved over a seven-day and 24-hour period despite setting a new all-time high price above $124,000 on Wednesday.

Local cops said that it would be difficult to retrieve the Bitcoin from the alleged kidnappers.

Crypto-fueled kidnappings—dubbed “wrench attacks”—are on the rise around the world: Just last month, four people in London were convicted for kidnapping a Belgian barber after he boasted online about a Bitcoin fortune he didn’t actually have.

In France, a total of 25 suspects were arrested earlier this summer in relation to a series of crypto-driven attacks and kidnapping attempts, including the failed abduction of the pregnant daughter of Pierre Noizat, co-founder and CEO of French crypto exchange Paymium.

Earlier in the year, Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife were kidnapped in France and held for ransom, with Balland’s finger reportedly cut off and sent to associates. Police liberated the couple after about 24 hours of captivity.

And two men in June pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and torturing a man for his Bitcoin in a high-profile case in New York.

A database of “wrench attacks” shows nearly as many attacks so far in 2025 as the entirety of 2024.