Costa del Sol police have arrested three British men for kidnapping a UK cryptocurrency trader and demanding his release for €30,000 ($31,000). The 34 year old, who speaks Hindi, managed to escape his apartment just before the cops were looking to search the apartment he was being held in.
🚨🇪🇸SPANISH POLICE BUST UK CRYPTO BROKER KIDNAPPING GANG
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) February 9, 2025
3 British men were arrested in Spain for kidnapping a UK crypto broker and demanding a £25,000 ransom.
The suspects lured the trader to a Marbella resort, held him hostage, and threatened to kill him if he didn’t give… pic.twitter.com/1Sy0qAGkSW
Apparently, the traders have been tricked into visiting an apartment near Estepona, where they’ve supposedly been threatened and forced to give the kidnappers access to their cryptocurrency money. Yet, he made a fake call for a crypto wallet code with a client. He secretly even contacted a friend in London who quickly passed on to his mother. A quick response was called to the police by her.
But as police got nearer, the victim saw that he had a chance to escape. He then jumped from a 30 feet balcony breaking his ankles but he still escaped. At the same time, the suspects were caught by the police as they were trying to drive away in an Audi.
Officers took over €8,000 in cash, two guns, three knives, 25 grams of pink cocaine and other valuable things during the search. Authorities said all three suspects had criminal records in the UK.
The trader was reportedly chosen by the kidnappers after meeting in the south of Spain, Marbella, and getting acquainted with his work in cryptocurrency. The police operation, called “Operation Espino,” successfully broke up the gang. The two arrested men were charged with kidnapping, having illegal weapons and drug dealing.
Currently, the victim is healing from his injuries and the suspects are in jail. This is a dramatic escape and police action that demonstrates the growing peril of dealing with big money cryptocurrency dealers.
The case is still being investigated by authorities to stop such crimes from happening again in the future.
