French prosecutors added Monday that police arrested seven people over the weekend in connection with the invitation of the father of a cryptocurrency entrepreneur, and that prisoners were released.
In a statement, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office said Thursday that the man was informed that he had been lured in Paris and detained in “depth of ransom.” The office did not name the man who was invited.
The prisoners who were detained at the Essonne home south of Paris were released by police on Saturday evening, the statement said. It added that the man was injured and taken for treatment without providing further details.
The prosecutor’s office did not immediately answer questions about the nature of prisoner injury or the amount of demand.
Police arrested four people during the operation Saturday “at or near the home where the victim was taken prisoner,” and the fifth person “driving one of the vehicles that the assailant could use,” prosecutors said. Two more people were arrested on Sunday, the statement added.
In a social media post, French Minister of Home Affairs Bruno Letterou wrote, “A massive congratulations to the investigators who did the exceptional job of releasing this man and arresting prisoners.”
The incident was the latest famous invitation in France related to cryptocurrency.
In January, police released code entrepreneur David Barlands and his wife.
Balland is the founder of Ledger, selling physical devices and storing crypto assets. He was hospitalized because the temptants had amputated his hand, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said at the time. His wife was tied to a car, but otherwise unharmed, Bekuau added.
A few weeks ago, he and his family had been held hostage in France by a group that wanted to blackmail his son, a code influencer living in Dubai, French news media reported.
Prosecutors didn’t immediately answer questions on Monday asking if there was any link between last week’s invitation and other cryptocurrency-related aid.
