TL;DR
- Five men were convicted after two French crypto millionaires were abducted, restrained and tortured for 52 hours in an east London flat.
- The attackers demanded $150,000, received $30,000 in cryptocurrency and released one victim while allegedly transferring the other for further extortion.
- Police traced the gang through a forgotten phone, but alleged organizer Ibrahim Mohamed remains free as crypto-related physical attacks continue rising sharply across several jurisdictions worldwide.
Five men have been convicted at Inner London Crown Court after two French cryptocurrency millionaires were held and tortured for 52 hours in an east London flat. The victims, both in their 20s, were abducted after parking a rented Mercedes in Shadwell, where masked attackers carrying a gun and knife forced them back into the vehicle. The case turned visible crypto wealth into the basis for an exceptionally violent ransom operation. Prosecutors said the pair may have attracted attention through publicly extravagant lifestyles, exposing how online displays of success can create dangerous physical targets.
A forgotten phone helps police uncover the detention site
The captors bound the men with tape and cable ties, beat them, stuffed socks into their mouths and demanded $150,000. During the ordeal, boiling water was poured over their bodies, a cigarette was extinguished in one victim’s mouth, and threats of mutilation were made. One victim said he was starved and forced to drink toilet water. The violence was designed to convert fear and physical suffering into immediate cryptocurrency transfers. The gang ultimately received $30,000 in crypto, released one man and drove the other away, allegedly seeking further payment through another group.
Police located the gang after tracing a phone left in the rented Mercedes by a friend traveling with the victims. Officers then pursued a car carrying Julius George, Isaac Bakoya and Adel Sineen at speeds reaching 70 mph through residential streets before it struck a lamppost. A forgotten phone transformed a concealed detention site into a traceable location and triggered the arrests. Jurors convicted two defendants of conspiracy to blackmail and false imprisonment, while three others were found guilty of false imprisonment. All five were cleared of kidnapping, possessing an imitation firearm and sexual assault charges.
The alleged organizer, Ibrahim Mohamed, known as “Nino” and stored as “Fatboy” in one defendant’s phone, remains at large after reportedly directing the operation through WhatsApp and Snapchat. The case arrives amid rising physical attacks on crypto holders, with 34 confirmed wrench attacks recorded during the first four months of 2026, up 41% year over year. The convictions close only part of the case while the alleged coordinator remains beyond police custody. The episode delivers a disturbing warning that digital wealth can create offline exposure when identity, location and lifestyle become publicly connected.
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