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A Belgian court has sentenced three for the abduction of a crypto coach\u2019s wife, marking another high-profile case amid the rising wave of crypto kidnappings in France.<\/p>\n
The Brussels Criminal Court court has sentenced three kidnappers to 12 years in prison for the abduction of the wife of crypto investor and trading coach St\u00e9phane Winkel, as initially reported<\/a> by local news agency La Derni\u00e8re Heure.<\/p>\n The incident occurred in December last year outside their home in Forest, Brussels, where the victim was forcibly taken and held hostage in a van. After Winkel raised the alarm, police chased the vehicle and ultimately stopped it near Bruges, freeing the victim and apprehending the suspects.<\/p>\n The court also ordered the convicted kidnappers to pay over one million euros in civil damages to the victim, rejecting kidnappers\u2019 claims that they acted under duress.<\/p>\n While the three perpetrators were held accountable, the court said that the masterminds behind the attack remain unidentified.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Winkel\u2019s case is part of a disturbing wave of crypto-related kidnappings sweeping across France. Most recently, a 26-year-old TikTok influencer in Juvisy-sur-Orge, near Paris, was abducted by four men demanding \u20ac50K in crypto. The attackers targeted the influencer due to his social media presence, but released him when they found his crypto accounts nearly empty. <\/p>\n