Four men have been arrested in the Ukraine capital, Kyiv, on suspicion of kidnapping, robbing, and murdering a 29-year-old after forcing him to transfer Bitcoin worth approximately $170,000.
Ukraine is still very much embroiled in a war with Russia, which has left its citizens stuck in turbulent times. According to Online.ua, an independent Ukrainian publication, the average salary in Kyiv is in the region of 21,800 UAH ($530). Which means the $170,000 worth of stolen Bitcoin amounts to more than 500 times the average salary for the residents in the capital city.
National Police of Ukraine said in a press release—which was translated by Decrypt—that the perpetrators tracked down the victim’s address after they discovered that he owned Bitcoin worth 7 million Ukrainian hryvnias (UAH), or approximately $170,000. As the victim was returning home around midnight, the police say the suspects beat and forcibly dragged him into a car and then took him to an abandoned building in Kyiv. At the building, they forced the victim to transfer his Bitcoin to their wallet.
After the Bitcoin was in their possession, police say the suspects strangled and killed the 29-year-old man.
In an attempt to prevent getting caught, police say the perpetrators took the victim’s body to the forest and buried him. They then changed the number plates and appearance of their car before converting the stolen Bitcoin into cash.
Police were alerted to the man’s kidnapping after neighbors said they heard screaming and said they saw a man being forced into a car. A police investigation was immediately launched with all police units in the area—including the Rapid Operational Response Unit—searching for the kidnappers.
The four arrested men, aged between 24 to 29, are currently in custody facing charges of “robbery attack, kidnapping and murder of a person for selfish reasons and concealment of a crime,” according to the translated press release.
The defendants have not been granted bail and face life imprisonment.
Edited by Stacy Elliott.
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