Mum and son kidnapped for 'cryptocurrency ransom' worth nearly £300,000

Mum and son kidnapped for 'cryptocurrency ransom' worth nearly £300,000 A dramatic police raid rescued the mum and 11-year-old boy after they were snatched from their home by masked men in a botched plot to steal £300,000 of cryptocurrencyNewsBenedict Tetzlaff-Deas News Reporter21:45, 15 Apr 2026View 2 ImagesA reconstruction of the kidnapping was shown on French television(Image: TF1 INFO)A mum and her son have been freed in a dramatic police raid after being snatched by kidnappers who demanded a cryptocurrency ransom.‌Seven people have been arrested after an elite police unit swooped on the address in Boissy-Saint-Léger, France, where the pair were being held captive after being abducted from their home in a terrifying break-in.‌According to a witness report, four masked men smashed into the family home shortly after 7am on Monday, where they tied the father to a chair and ventured upstairs to find the mother and 11-year-old boy.‌The suspects then demanded a transfer of $400,000 (£295,000) in cryptocurrency, beat the dad, and "threatened to mutilate him". Prosecutors said that at least one of the men went around ransacking the home, stealing €10,000 (£8,600) in cash, jewellery, a number of silver ingots, and a rifle, which the gang used to threaten the family.View 2 ImagesThe masked men demanded £300,000 in cryptocurrency(Image: TF1 INFO)But their plan was sent awry when they discovered they would have to wait seven days before the crypto transfer could take place, leading them to abduct the woman and child as security before fleeing in two vehicles.‌The dad eventually managed to free himself and alert a friend, who then contacted the authorities."He received videos from his relatives, who were clearly being held in a hotel room", the report said, with investigators tracing the hotel to Boissy-Saint-Léger in the Val-de-Marne region.Officers from the GIGN, the elite tactical unit of the French National Gendarmerie, raided the room the n...