French authorities have reportedly rescued the co-founder of Hardware Wallet Firm Ledger and his wife after they were kidnapped and held for ransom.
According to a new article from the New York Times, Dave Balland and his wife were kidnapped from their home in France earlier this week by bad actors who then contacted another company founder and demanded a large amount of crypto for their release.
The report says Balland was found and released by police on Wednesday about 30 miles away from his home, while his wife was found a day later 80 miles away in a car.
His wife was unharmed, but Balland had to be hospitalized because his hand was mutilated by the kidnappers – a photo of which was used to pressure the ledger to pay the ransom.
In the report, prosecutor Laure Beccuau said that during the negotiations, part of the ransom was paid, but the assets were tracked, frozen and seized.
As stated by Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier on the social media platform
“We are deeply relieved that David and his wife have been released and are now safe. I have reached out to David, and our thoughts remain with him, his family and the members of our team who worked with David while he was at Ledger. We are grateful to law enforcement for their quick action. Our top priority has always been to allow law enforcement to do their work and protect the integrity of the investigation. ”
Nine men and one woman, aged between 20 and 40, were arrested and questioned about the kidnapping, although no other details about the suspects were released. In the report, Beccaua says the crimes of kidnapping, torture and armed extortion carry potential life sentences.
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