Three Florida teens allegedly robbed a cryptocurrency millionaire of all his digital assets after violently abducting him at gunpoint and driving him out to an Arizona desert.
Florida teens stole $4 million
According to law enforcement accounts, Belal Ashraf and Austin Fletcher, both 16 and residents of Pasco County, Florida, have been arrested and now face charges of robbery, kidnapping, and extortion.
Due to the violent nature of the accused crime, prosecutors received approval to try the two teens as adults. A third suspect, also a minor, is still in the wind.
The victim had been involved in a cryptocurrency-focused event held at a commercial venue in downtown Las Vegas.
Authorities say that shortly after he returned to his apartment complex and parked his car, he was approached by the three teenage suspects.
Police reports state the young criminals forced the man at gunpoint into the back seat of their vehicle.
Prosecutors allege that the suspects managed to obtain $4 million worth of digital assets, including cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens, from the victim.
“[The alleged victim] was told if he complied, he would live to see another day, and if he did not comply, they had his dad and would kill him,” read official court filings.
“[The alleged victim] had a towel placed over his head and was told by the suspects not to look at them.”
Florida teens may have been guided by a fourth suspect
The victim told authorities he could hear a fourth person speaking to the suspects via speakerphone during the ordeal.
Investigators say the suspects demanded the victim’s login credentials to access his digital financial accounts. The victim reportedly provided the requested information under extreme duress.
Police allege that the suspects transported the man out of Nevada and into a desolate area near White Hills, Arizona, located more than 70 miles southeast of Las Vegas.
Eventually, the victim was forced out of the car and abandoned in the desert.
According to case records, he walked for around five miles before reaching a gas station, where he called a friend for help.
Detectives from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department traced the suspects’ vehicle and learned that it had traveled from Florida to Nevada.
Ashraf and Fletcher were later apprehended, though the third teen remains at large.
During a court hearing, a prosecutor revealed that investigators suspect the missing suspect may have fled the country.
Investigators were able to track the vehicle’s movements to Mississippi, where they discovered that a firearm associated with one of the suspects’ family members was displayed in a social media post uploaded by one of the teens.
Authorities also stated that the three suspects had previous encounters with school officials back in Florida.
Court documents recount an incident in which the teens reportedly yelled at an assistant principal and used profanity in both English and Arabic. Ashraf was also seen shoulder-checking a school resource officer.
Judge Daniel Westmeyer of the Las Vegas Justice Court imposed a bail amount of $4 million for each suspect.
Ashraf’s legal representative recently petitioned for his release under house arrest.
Judge Noreen Demonte granted the request, placing Ashraf on electronic monitoring as a condition of his release, according to court documentation.
The case is expected to move forward in a preliminary hearing scheduled for June.
Houston teens charged for trying to rob crypto-influencer
In another case involving teenagers and a violent crypto theft, four young men in Houston, Texas, face serious charges after allegedly attacking a social media personality and attempting to steal her cryptocurrency holdings.
The incident reportedly occurred in early March, when Kaitlyn Siragusa, an online content creator known by her handle “Amouranth,” was sleeping at her home in northwest Houston.
According to reports, three men broke into her bedroom and demanded access to her cryptocurrency accounts.
Siragusa had earlier posted a screenshot showing her account held more than $20 million in digital assets, which allegedly spurred the crime.
The suspects are accused of striking Siragusa multiple times with a firearm. According to reports, Siragusa’s husband fired shots at the intruders, prompting them to flee.
The Harris County District Clerk’s Office identified the suspects as Demarcus Morris Jr., 17; Dylan Nesho Campbell, 18; and Bryan Anthony Salazar Guerrero, 19. A fourth suspect, aged 16, has also been linked to the case.
“They brought duct tape and masks and were armed with handguns,” Siragusa stated on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Each of the three named suspects is facing charges of aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.
According to legal documents, both Morris and Campbell remain in custody. Morris has been assigned a $150,000 bond, split between two charges, while Campbell’s bond stands at $200,000.
Guerrero was released after posting a $100,000 bond, divided equally between the two charges against him.
