French police arrest five in crypto ransom plot targeting magistrate

French police have arrested four men and one woman after a magistrate and her mother were held captive for 30 hours in a cryptocurrency ransom scheme. The victims, found injured, were rescued, and two of the suspects attempted to flee to Spain before being apprehended. This incident occurs amid a noted rise in cryptocurrency-related kidnappings in Europe, where digital assets are increasingly leveraged for untraceable ransoms, prompting French authorities to enhance their capabilities in combatting such crypto-facilitated crimes through specialized units and blockchain tracing training.

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