French police arrest five over crypto-linked magistrate kidnapping

French authorities have arrested five suspects after a magistrate and her mother were held captive last week for around 30 hours in a cryptocurrency ransom plot, prosecutors told AFP on Sunday.

The arrests of four men and one woman followed the discovery of the 35-year-old magistrate and her 67-year-old mother on Friday, found injured in a garage in the southeastern Drome department, the Lyon public prosecutor's office said.

During a press conference held later on Friday, Lyon prosecutor Thierry Dran said the magistrate's partner -- who was not home when the pair were abducted overnight Wednesday to Thursday -- has a leading position in a cryptocurrency start-up.

A massive police search involving 160 officers was launched after he had received a message and a photo of his partner from the kidnappers demanding a ransom to be paid in cryptocurrency. 

The captors threatened to mutilate the victims if the transfer was not made quickly, Dran told reporters, declining to specify the amount demanded.

But the two women managed to free themselves and raise the alarm. They were rescued Friday morning in Bourg-les-Valence without any ransom being paid, according to the prosecutor.

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French authorities have been dealing with a string of kidnappings and extortion attempts targeting the families of wealthy individuals dealing in cryptocurrencies.

In January 2025, kidnappers seized French crypto boss David Balland and his partner. Balland co-founded a crypto firm called Ledger, valued at the time at more than $1 billion.

Balland's kidnappers cut off his finger and demanded a hefty ransom. He was freed the next day, and his girlfriend was found tied up in the boot of a car outside Paris.

In May, the father of a man who ran a Malta-based cryptocurrency company was kidnapped by four hooded men in Paris. 

The victim, whose finger was also severed by the kidnappers and for whom a ransom of several million euros was demanded, was released 58 hours later in a raid by the security forces.

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