'Crypto Godfather' pleads guilty in plot to carjack Lamborghini to steal millions from notorious Bitcoin hacker

Published: 07:14, 2 June 2026 | Updated: 07:28, 2 June 2026 A California man who once called himself the 'Crypto Godfather' admitted to his role in an attempted multi-million dollar Bitcoin robbery that led to a Connecticut couple's violent kidnapping in 2024. Adam Iza, 25, pleaded guilty on Monday to interference with commerce by robbery - also known as Hobbs Act Robbery - in federal court, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut David Sullivan announced.    Police in Danbury had arrested six men from Florida on August 25, 2024, who were involved in the violent carjacking of a Lamborghini Urus and the kidnapping of the two people inside the vehicle. An ensuing investigation revealed that the kidnapping victims' son was involved in a wide-ranging scheme to steal millions of dollars in Bitcoin in the country's largest ever crypto heist. In an attempt to then steal the cryptocurrency back, Iza and others planned and coordinated the attempted robbery and kidnapping. One of his alleged co-conspirators, who had a previous altercation with the victim's son in a Miami nightclub the month before, was said to be in regular communication with some of the kidnappers from Florida ahead of the crime, providing funding for it and helping to arrange their transportation and lodging. Iza then also used his cellphone and encrypted messaging apps to communicate with the kidnappers - directing them on how to carry out the plan, as he also provided them with money. The six men from Florida, meanwhile, were all charged with offenses related to the violent carjacking and kidnapping, and all of them have pleaded guilty. Adam Iza, 25, pleaded guilty on Monday to interference with commerce by robbery - also known as Hobbs Act Robbery - in federal court A Connecticut couple traveling in a Lamborghini Urus (like the one seen here) were carjacked and kidnapped on August 25, 2024 Danbury police have previously said they received multiple phone calls on August 25 reporting that a couple had been abducted. The unidentified victims had been house-hunting, and pulled up to a tony home in their Lamborghini, believing they were meeting with a real estate agent, according to ABC 7. But their luxury vehicle was then purposely rear-ended by a white Honda Civic, and when the couple then exited their vehicle to see what had happened, they were surrounded by three other vehicles. At that point, the Florida men beat the couple with a baseball bat and shoved them in a white van. When the husband then resisted, the kidnappers also punched him in the face. 'The suspects repeatedly told [the couple] that they would "kill them,"' FBI Agent Matthew Loucks wrote in an affidavit obtained by CNBC.  'The victims were pushed into the back of the work van and held down. The suspects then bound both victims' arms and feet with silver duct tape, which they also used to cover [the husband's] face. The suspects forced [his wife] to lie face down and ordered her not to look at them.' Other suspects then drove off with the couple's Lamborghini. Fortunately, a witness saw the whole thing and followed the van until it crashed and police arrived on the scene.  Angel Borrero, Reynaldo Diaz, Anthony Pena, Josue Romero, Ricardo Estrada and Michael Rivas were all subsequently arrested - as authorities remained stumped about their connection to the victims.  Floridians Reynaldo Diaz, Michael Rivas and Anthony Pena were arrested for the kidnapping and carjacking Josue Romero, Ricardo Estrada, Angel Borrero were also charged - though police initially struggled to figure out what their connection was to the victims But Danbury police had already been familiar with the couple ahead of their traumatic experience because their home had been targeted by 'swatting calls,' in which people who knew their son from the online gaming community falsely reported a crime at their house, Detective Sergeant Steven Castrovinci said. He said officers had sought to question the son following the kidnapping, but held off at the request of the FBI, who informed them that the son was being investigated in connection with the cryptocurrency heist that stole $246 million. 'That's how we knew - and even at that time, we didn't really know to what extent he was involved in it,' Castrovinci told the Danbury News-Times. 'We just knew that there was an investigation into him regarding a crypto heist. 'I don't know how [the six Florida men] knew this kid had that type of money, but everything leads to them going after the parents because of what the kid was involved in.'  Iza has been detained since September 24, 2024 after he was charged in the Central District of California on unrelated federal offenses including conspiracy against rights, wire fraud and tax evasion. In that case, Iza hired off-duty Los Angeles sheriff's deputies to act as his personal enforcers against his enemies - carrying out extortion, intimidation, setting people up for arrest and abuse of the legal process. Court documents detailed how in late 2021 or early 2022, Iza - believing a victim possessed a computer containing more than $100 million in cryptocurrency - told one of the deputies to obtain a search warrant under false pretenses from a Los Angeles Superior Court judge. In an affidavit supporting a search warrant application, the deputy falsely claimed the victim's phone number was associated with a suspect in a firearms investigation. When he then secured the illegal warrant, the deputy tracked down the victim and provided his address to Iza. Then in March 2022, Iza sent three armed individuals to try to force entry into the victim's home to steal the laptop - but they ran after the victim fired a gunshot in their direction. Apparently undeterred, Iza then sent the victim a video of the attempted home invasion robbery.  In another incident in August 2021, two deputies held a victim at gunpoint inside Iza's home, after which Iza transferred $25,000 from the victim's bank account to his own. He later also admitted to stealing more than $37 million by fraudulently gaining access to Meta Platforms Inc business manager accounts and their associated lines of credit from 2020 through 2022. For those crimes, Iza faced up to 35 years in federal prison. He now faces up to another 20 years behind bars for the Hobbs Act Robbery conviction, for which he is due to be sentenced on August 12.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. 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