France Charges 88, Including Minors, in Crypto ‘Wrench Attack’ Crackdown

In brief

• France has charged 88 suspects, more than 10 of them minors, across 12 active judicial investigations into violent crypto kidnappings.
• Six suspects were arrested this month in two separate operations linked to kidnappings in Challes-les-Eaux and Dompierre-sur-Mer; all six are in pre-trial detention.
• Investigators identified structured criminal networks by tracing repeat offenders across 135 incidents recorded since 2023.

France has charged 88 suspects, more than 10 of them minors, across 12 active judicial investigations into a wave of violent crypto “wrench attacks,” in a sweeping crackdown on organized gangs targeting crypto holders.

The National Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office, or PNACO, said Friday in a press release that 75 of those charged have been placed in pre-trial detention across 12 judicial investigations handled by specialized magistrates at the Paris Judicial Court.

The charges cover kidnapping, unlawful confinement, extortion, and money laundering, all committed by organized gangs, according to Vanessa Perrée, National Prosecutor for Organized Crime at the French Ministry of Justice.

The charges reflect the full scale of a crisis that has made France the global epicenter of wrench attacks, violent physical crimes in which criminals coerce crypto holders into surrendering their digital assets.

French law enforcement has recorded 135 crypto-related incidents since 2023, including 18 in 2024, 67 in 2025, and 47 already in 2026, which officials described as the result of “structured criminal networks.”

Last week, three men aged 25–30 were detained over a November 2025 kidnapping in Challes-les-Eaux, followed days later by three more arrests, two already charged in that case, linked to a separate December kidnapping in Dompierre-sur-Mer.

All six have been placed in pre-trial detention.

Crypto "wrench attacks"

Globally, wrench attacks hit a record 72 incidents in 2025, up 75% year-over-year, with over $40.9 million in losses, as Europe accounted for more than 40% of cases, led by France, which recorded 19 attacks, surpassing the U.S. with eight, according to CertiK.

Jonathan Riss, Blockchain Intelligence Analyst at CertiK, told Decrypt that the masterminds behind these attacks are frequently insulated from arrest.

"The masterminds are often based abroad, outside the EU and out of immediate reach of authorities, operating through local middlemen and young executors," he said.

"France ranks among the top three countries worldwide for personal data breaches," Riss said, citing a leak at ANTS, the agency handling national ID cards and driving licenses, that exposed the personal data of 12 million citizens.

"That commercial layer is compounded by insider state leaks: for a few thousand euros, civil servants have proven willing to resell highly valuable information."

He said the problem runs deeper than France's numbers suggest.

"Some regions are clearly underreporting: most cases are still recorded as standard robberies with no crypto tag, and victims often stay silent over fear of retaliation or tax exposure," Riss said. "Not every country treats wrench attacks the same way — some jurisdictions lack the legal framework or law enforcement training to categorize crypto-related coercion as a distinct crime."

On Saturday, a Telegram post by the company's founder Pavel Durov cited a case involving a French tax official who had allegedly sold crypto owners' data to criminals. Durov warned that state demands for user identification and private messages would endanger crypto users, writing, "More data => More leaks => More victims."

Crypto attacks in France

The crackdown follows a relentless series of high-profile attacks that have shaken France's crypto community.

Incidents include the kidnapping and mutilation of Ledger co-founder David Balland, whose case saw its final suspect arrested in Spain last month, a home invasion attempt targeting Binance France’s CEO, and the abduction of a magistrate and her mother for a crypto ransom.

Last week, a mother and her 11-year-old son were kidnapped from their home in Burgundy in a crypto-linked ransom plot, before being rescued by elite GIGN officers after being held overnight.

A Versailles home invasion last month also saw attackers pose as police and force a couple in their late 50s to transfer roughly $1 million (€900,000) in Bitcoin at knifepoint.

Perrée has warned crypto holders to limit their social media exposure and stay alert to impersonation attempts, after the PNACO separately flagged a surge in phishing calls and emails targeting cryptocurrency holders.

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