David Balland, co-founder of the cryptocurrency wallet developer Ledger, was rescued in a police operation after being kidnapped by a ransom attack in France, according to reports, ending on the days of rotating gossip.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said Ballard and his wife were kidnapped in early Tuesday from their home in Central France and was taken into account two separate addresses, Reuters reported on Friday. The prosecutor said the kidnappers interacted with another Ledger co-founder to seek ransom paid to cryptocurrencies.
A police operation involving the French Elite Forces that Gign released Ballard on Wednesday and his wife was found on Thursday, the prosecutor said. Ballard was taken to the hospital to receive the treatment with one of his hands, cut off, Beccuau said, without announcing further details, according to Reuters. Local newspaper le parisien reported The attackers cut Ballard’s finger and sent it to the companions for a ransom.
“We were completely relieved that David and his wife were released, and now it is safe,” said Pascal Gaithier, chairman and Ledger’s CEO, in a statement shared with CoinDesk.
Rumors spread on social media last week that one of Ledger’s co-founders were kidnapped. Reports say Eric Larchevêque, another co-founder of the company, the victim came out wrong. CoinDesk reached the Ledger for confirmation at the time, but the company did not comment.
“Our top priority will always allow law enforcement to do their jobs and protect the integrity of the investigation,” said CEO Gauthier. “We respect law enforcement requests on caution in critical details of the ongoing investigation and we appreciate press members who have done the same.”
The incident is another example of a stressful trend of robbery and crime targeting crypto traders and industry numbers as the Crypto Bull Market marses on the creation of wealth to investors. For example, Dean Skurka, the CEO of Wonderfi, a publicly listed Crypto Holding Company who owns one of Canada’s largest crypto exchange, is kidnapped for a ransom in Toronto last year.
“Found an increase in IRLs (real-life) robbery targeting crypto traders located in Western Europe for the past few months,” famous Sleuth Blockchain Zachxbt has been posted on the Telegram . “All cases are involving celebrities in the crypto community where they are shot with a gun. While the rest of the cycle continues, be more concerned with whom you share your wins and meet (in real life ). ”
