A man returned from a crypto event in Las Vegas last November. He parked his car at his apartment complex. Three teenagers approached him. They forced him into their car at gunpoint.
One of them was holding a weapon. Kidnappers ordered him to keep quiet or else die. They cautioned him against viewing their faces. They covered his head with a towel.
The vehicle pulled out of the city. The victim was in a daze. The teenagers asked for passwords to their virtual wallet. They threatened him to enter the password. They had instructions from a voice on the loudspeaker. The victim identified a fourth person issuing directions.
Teens steal $4M Crypto after abduction
The teens crossed state borders. They got to a desert in Arizona. The location was more than 70 miles away from Las Vegas. The teens pushed the man out of the vehicle. The man walked alone in the night. After walking five miles, he arrived at a gas stop. He phoned a friend to request help.
The perpetrator was subsequently reported to the police by the man. Investigators traced a Florida car to the scene. The police halted a second vehicle in Mississippi. One found at the scene was a match to a weapon on a suspect’s social media account.
Both 16-year-old Belal Ashraf and Austin Fletcher were from Florida. The police identified a third teenager but explained he had already left the country. They charged the three with robbery, kidnapping, and extortion.
Teens with troubled past charged in $4M Crypto theft
Records indicated that they got into trouble at a Florida high school. Reports saw them swearing and behaving aggressively. Ashraf had bumped a school officer and sworn at the staff on occasion.
Fletcher was in court on Friday. His attorney requested house arrest. The judge refused and set bail at $4 million. The same request was also made on Tuesday by Ashraf’s lawyer. The judge permitted him to return to his residence under electronic monitoring.
The police testified to the theft of $4 million in crypto and NFTs. The case was assisted by the FBI. A court set a hearing in June. Authorities are still active on the case.
