Armed raid in Verneuil-sur-Seine marks latest in a string of violent “wrench attacks” targeting crypto holders in France Three armed men forced their way into a family home in Verneuil-sur-Seine on Friday evening, brutally assaulting the residents in what French media describe as the latest “wrench attack” to hit the country’s crypto community. According to Le Parisien, the attackers beat both parents, bound the couple and their two children with cable ties, and then fled toward a nearby train station after the family managed to free themselves and seek shelter with neighbors. The incident is the most recent in a disturbing week of crypto-linked violent crime across France, underscoring a growing pattern of physical extortion aimed at forcing victims to hand over access to digital assets. A “wrench attack” refers to these kinds of in-person assaults — often violent and targeted — intended to coerce victims into relinquishing wallet keys, USB drives, or other credentials. One day earlier, attackers abducted a 43-year-old man from his home in Saint-Léger-sous-Cholet in the early hours of Friday. Ouest‑France reports the victim was tied and beaten, then abandoned and hospitalized in Basse-Goulaine, roughly 50 kilometers from his home; investigators from the Specialized Interregional Jurisdiction of Rennes say the assailants were after his crypto. The man’s family had reportedly already experienced multiple attempted break-ins over the Christmas holidays. Last week also saw a separate break-in in Manosque, where three masked intruders held a woman at gunpoint and stole a USB drive containing her partner’s crypto credentials. Taken together, these attacks have put France at the center of Europe’s most visible wave of violent crypto kidnappings and extortion attempts. Cybercrime consultant David Sehyeon Baek told Decrypt that France’s recent surge in violent, crypto-linked crime is especially notable in the EU. He warned that a key driver is how criminals are identifying targets. In June, French prosecutors charged a tax official accused of abusing access to government databases to pinpoint crypto investors and allegedly pass their personal and financial details to organized crime groups — an example of how confidential data can be weaponized. Baek also highlighted a major reason these crimes may be underreported: victims often avoid filing police reports because doing so can expose wallet balances, transaction histories, trading behavior, and potential tax or compliance problems. “Victims weigh the low chance of recovering funds against the high perceived risk of tax trouble, wealth exposure, reputational damage, or even physical danger,” he said. “For many, staying quiet feels safer than speaking up.” The string of attacks has renewed questions about investor safety and data security in the crypto ecosystem, and has drawn attention to the need for better protections both online and offline as criminals increasingly combine digital targeting with real‑world violence. Authorities in the affected regions continue to investigate the incidents. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

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