New Delhi: A cryptocurrency trader was kidnapped by four criminals, including two juveniles, and forced to pay in Bitcoin for his release. The accused had interacted with the trader by posing as customers.
The victim, Arpit, was made to sit in a car in east Delhi and taken to outer Delhi where he was forced to transfer cryptocurrency at gunpoint. The abductors also called his younger brother, Harshit, seeking ransom for his release.
DCP (East) Jasmeet Singh said, “One of the accused, Vikram (32), is a graduate, while the other, Nitin Yadav (20), is in his second-year of graduation being done through correspondence. They had roped in the juveniles to identify Bitcoin traders. Vikram saw videos on YouTube to understand the trading system and decided to extort traders by posing as a buyer.”
Last Friday, police got a call about the trader being kidnapped from Ganesh Nagar. Harshit told police that his brother had gone to collect cash from a buyer. Later, he got a call from the kidnappers demanding money for Arpit’s release. After checking CCTV footage, police zeroed in on an Innova that was used to kidnap the trader. A wireless message was flashed across the city and the victim was rescued from Auchandi border. The Innova was found robbed from a cab driver in Kanjhawala.
The victim told police that the accused were conversing in Haryanvi and often called him a sadharan (simple) man. Hearing this, Harshit said that a Bitcoin buyer had spoken to him in the same manner two days ago. The buyer had met him twice, but refused the deal at the last moment. He had come in an Ertiga bearing a Haryana numberplate.
“We scanned the records or criminals who had used similar modus operandi and got in touch with informers. On Sunday, we got a tip-off that the accused men were in outer Delhi. The four were apprehended from Kakrola, Rohini, Sultanpur Dabas and Harveli village,” said DCP Singh.
Vikram told police that he earlier drove a cab, but didn’t earn enough to pay back his loans. He started watching videos online and decided to extort cryptocurrency traders. The accused booked the Innova from Gurgaon and then carjacked it. They forced the cab driver at gunpoint to stay in a farmhouse until they executed their plan.
“One of the accused called both brothers separately telling them he wanted to purchase Bitcoin in cash. Both Harshit and his brother didn’t know they were talking to the same person. Arpit agreed to meet them near Ganesh Chowk from where they abducted him. They asked him to transfer two Bitcoins worth Rs 14 lakh. However, he could only transfer 0.75 Bitcoin worth Rs 5 lakh. He was then let go near the border,” said an investigating officer.
