An American tourist in the UK was drugged by a fake taxi driver and had $123,000 worth of Bitcoin stolen.
According to My London, Jacob Owen-Klein called an Uber after drinking at a bar in London but chose a private hire taxi that looked similar to an Uber driver but had a different vehicle. It was only after the incident that he realized the difference.
After getting into the car, the driver handed him a cigarette, which may have contained rare and potent anesthetic scopolamine, causing him to lose consciousness quickly. Shortly after waking up, the driver kicked him out of the car, took his phone, and quickly fled, which contained the private keys to his cryptocurrency account.
At the time of this incident, there had been a recent surge in kidnappings, extortions, and armed robberies targeting executives and investors in the cryptocurrency industry.
Members of the cryptocurrency community are becoming targets of violent crimes.
In May, multiple kidnapping incidents involving cryptocurrency investors and their families were reported. On May 3, the father of an unnamed cryptocurrency exchange founder was rescued by French police. He had previously been kidnapped by an organized crime group that demanded a ransom.
Not long after, the daughter and grandson of Paymium exchange CEO Pierre Noizat also became targets of a kidnapping attempt. The incident occurred in Paris, where they were attacked and attempted to be forcibly taken into a car, but they successfully resisted.
The increasing frequency of attacks on cryptocurrency industry insiders has prompted them to enhance personal security measures, such as hiring bodyguards and private security.
