In the past few days, a wave of criminal activities related to cryptocurrency has swept through several countries. French officials praised Morocco's cooperation and noted that Bajou was the subject of an Interpol red notice for his involvement in previous attacks. Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities arrested a man accused of a large-scale cryptojacking operation that compromised over 5,000 accounts at a global hosting company. The scheme had been active since at least 2018 and reportedly caused damages of over $4.4 million through unauthorized cryptocurrency mining. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) achieved a legal victory over Keith Cruz, who was found responsible for cryptocurrency fraud amounting to $1.1 million using a fake 'Stemy Coin'.

24-year-old French-Moroccan Badis Mohamed Amid Bajou was arrested in Morocco for orchestrating a series of high-profile kidnappings in France aimed at stealing cryptocurrency. Acting at the request of French authorities, Morocco's national police and intelligence agency apprehended Bajou, who reportedly had several mobile phones and cold weapons in his possession. His arrest was confirmed by French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, who praised Morocco for its cooperation and the strength of judicial collaboration between the two countries in combating organized crime.

Interpol issued a red notice for Bajou in 2023 due to his connections to numerous criminal activities, including kidnappings related to the cryptocurrency sector. The latest incident occurred on May 13, when assailants attempted to kidnap the daughter and grandson of Pierre Noizat, the CEO of the French crypto platform Paymium. The dramatic attack was captured on video by witnesses, showing Noizat's daughter bravely fighting off the masked attackers. Ultimately, they escaped the scene in a waiting van.
Earlier in May, Paris police also rescued the father of a crypto entrepreneur who had been held captive for several days in connection with a plot to extort a ransom of 7 million euros ($7.8 million). In January, David Balland, co-founder of Ledger, was kidnapped from his home and held captive for a day before being rescued by police.
In response to this growing threat, French law enforcement is ramping up security measures for cryptocurrency executives and their families. These include providing them with priority access to emergency police lines, conducting home security assessments, and providing security briefings to ensure they follow best practices during the alarming rise in cryptocurrency-related kidnappings.

In Ukraine, police arrested a 35-year-old man from the Poltava region for allegedly conducting a years-long cryptojacking operation targeting an international hosting company. According to a statement released on June 4 by the Cyber Police of Ukraine, the suspect is accused of hacking the company's security systems to gain access to over 5,000 customer accounts.

Reportedly, once inside, he deployed unauthorized virtual machines and cryptocurrency mining software, siphoning off computing power and electricity without detection or payment. This unauthorized use of resources is often referred to as cryptojacking. In this case, the man is alleged to have caused damages amounting to over 185 million Ukrainian hryvnias or approximately $4.4 million.

Authorities believe the suspect had been active since at least 2018, exploiting vulnerabilities in corporate cybersecurity systems and moving between regions including Poltava, Odessa, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipro to avoid detection. During a search of his home, police confiscated computer equipment, mobile phones, and bank cards, as well as a number of digital evidence. Investigators say they found tools and data indicating that the suspect was active on hacking forums and that he had access to various hacked email accounts, cryptocurrency wallets, and software used for remotely managing large-scale mining operations.

This arrest followed a similar incident in the United States last year, when a man was charged with electronic fraud and money laundering after allegedly defrauding cloud computing companies to mine nearly $1 million in cryptocurrency. This case now adds to the growing list of criminals using corporate infrastructure for illegal mining activities.


In the US ...
Judge Tiffany Johnson ruled in favor of the SEC and ordered Cruz to pay over $1.1 million, including $530,000 in disgorged profits, nearly $51,000 in pre-judgment interest, and a civil penalty of another $530,000. In addition to financial penalties, Cruz was permanently barred from future violations of federal securities laws.

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