Key Highlights
- A crypto investor and family was beaten, tied up in Verneuil-sur-Seine home invasion; attackers fled toward the train station.
- The attack was targeted; the father heads a crypto investment group, highlighting rising organized crime against crypto holders.
- Investigators confirm attackers aimed for the family’s cryptocurrency; prior attempted break-ins were reported over the holidays.
A cryptocurrency investor and his family experienced a violent home invasion in Verneuil-sur-Seine, Yvelines, on the evening of January 10. The incident marks the third major “wrench attack” in the country in a single week.
As per the report by French news outlet Le Parisien, three armed men broke into the house around 8 p.m. They attacked both parents and then tied up the couple and their two children with cable ties.
Despite the brutal assault, the family managed to free themselves and ran to their neighbors for help. The attackers fled toward a nearby train station. Police have launched a manhunt to track the three suspects. The ages of the children have not been disclosed, and no life-threatening injuries were reported.
Attack linked to crypto investments
Authorities believe the assault was targeted. The father heads a cryptocurrency investment group, and in recent months, wealthy crypto holders in France have increasingly become the focus of organized crime.
Criminals are reportedly using home invasions, kidnappings, and “wrench attacks” — violent coercion to force victims to hand over digital assets — to steal cryptocurrency.
Investigators from Rennes’ Specialized Interregional Jurisdiction confirmed that the attackers were specifically after the family’s crypto holdings. The family had already faced several attempted break-ins over the Christmas holidays.
Just 24 hours prior, a 43-year-old software architect in Cholet was kidnapped from his home, beaten, and dumped 50 kilometers away after being forced to hand over his assets.
The surge in targeted attacks is increasingly linked to domestic data leaks. Investigators are currently probing the case of Ghalia C., a 32-year-old tax official accused of using the administration’s “Mira” software to sell sensitive investor data.
Ghalia reportedly sold lists containing the names, home addresses, and capital gains of crypto investors to criminal organizations for as little as €800 per hit.
While Ghalia admitted providing the data, she claimed ignorance of the buyers’ intentions. Experts say France has become a hotspot for these types of crimes, with dozens of incidents reported in 2025 alone.
Rising risks for crypto investors
According to cybercrime experts, this type of attack indicates that there are serious loopholes when it comes to how criminals target their future victims. For example, some criminals have been suspected of using confidential information such as government records or tax records to target investors in cryptocurrencies.
Many victims are reluctant to report these crimes, which may result in the exposure of their wallet balances, transactions, and even tax affairs. Police are calling on anyone who has information about the Verneuil-sur-Seine assault to come forward. The French crypto market remains on edge because the number of violent crimes against cryptocurrencies has been on the rise recently.
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