Five Convicted in East London Torture Case of French Crypto Millionaires

Five men convicted after two French crypto millionaires were held and tortured in East London Five men have been convicted in connection with the abduction, blackmail and 52-hour false imprisonment of two French cryptocurrency holders who were held in an East London flat last July, a case prosecutors described as a “cold, hard” torture ordeal. What happened - The victims, both in their 20s and described in court as cryptocurrency millionaires, were ambushed in Shadwell and driven to a flat in Canning Town. Prosecutor Heidi Stonecliffe KC told Inner London Crown Court that the men’s high-profile lifestyles on social media may have made them targets. - Jurors heard the pair were stripped, bound with tape and cable ties, beaten and had boiling water poured over them. The gang demanded $150,000; the victims eventually transferred about $30,000. - One of the victims alleges sexual assault by two members of the gang. Although the jury cleared those defendants of sexual assault, the complainant is legally protected and cannot be identified. How police tracked them down - A friend who had been dragged from the car left his phone inside, and police used that handset to trace the flat. One defendant, Yasir Mohamed, was arrested at the victims’ Airbnb in Earl’s Court after he drove there to try to access a second wallet. Jurors later cleared him of false imprisonment, and they could not reach a verdict on conspiracy to blackmail. Verdicts and other accused - Convicted of conspiracy to blackmail and false imprisonment: Gerson Borges and Mohamed Osman. - Convicted of false imprisonment: William Adebisi and Julius George. - Isaac Bakoya admitted false imprisonment. - All those convicted were cleared of kidnap, possessing an imitation firearm and sexual assault. - Adel Sineen, who crashed the gang’s car into a lamppost during a 70 mph pursuit, was cleared of false imprisonment but admitted dangerous driving. - Police say Ibrahim Mohamed, known as “Nino,” directed the plot from abroad and has not been arrested. Defence and prosecution positions - Defence lawyers argued there was no kidnap, claiming the Frenchmen had come to east London to buy cannabis and that some demands were “legitimate.” Prosecutors rejected that account, pointing to aggressive extortion tactics including demands made directly to the Airbnb. - Both victims declined to give in‑court evidence, saying they remained too frightened of the gang. Detective Chief Inspector Laura Hillier described the case as “a rare example of a conviction of this kind being secured without victim testimony.” Background on the defendants and sentencing - After the verdicts, the court heard three of those found guilty have previous convictions for manslaughter, robbery and possessing a handgun with ammunition. - All six defendants involved in the trial, including Sineen, will be sentenced in September. Wider context: “wrench attacks” on crypto holders - The case comes amid a rise in violent, real‑world attacks on people believed to hold cryptocurrency—so‑called “wrench attacks,” where assailants use physical force to steal private keys or coerce transfers. - Blockchain security firm CertiK verified 52 such attacks worldwide in the first half of 2026, a one‑third increase year‑on‑year. Of those, 39 occurred in Europe and 33 in France, with recorded exposure of $124.1 million. French prosecutors have charged 88 people in connection with the wave of attacks there. - The UK has seen its own high‑profile incidents: three teenagers were jailed over a $4.3 million knife‑point robbery in Hoxton, and four people were convicted over the kidnapping of a Belgian barber wrongly believed to hold a Bitcoin fortune. This case involved French victims but was carried out, policed and tried in the UK, highlighting the cross‑border risks for prominent crypto holders and the increasing stakes as attackers target digital‑asset wealth.