A crypto mogul who scammed investors out of half a billion dollars before disappearing with their money was brutally dismembered in Dubai, authorities say, after kidnappers discovered his digital fortune had vanished.
Russian nationals Roman Novak and his wife, Anna, were last seen alive on Oct. 2, according to Russian media outlet Komsomolskaya Pravda.
The pair reportedly traveled to a luxury resort in the mountain town of Hatta, outside Dubai, after being enticed by criminals posing as investors.
The glamorous couple was well known in Dubai’s elite circles, often sharing images online of lavish cars, luxury jets, and high-end parties.
But beneath the facade of wealth and sophistication, police say Novak’s empire was built on deception.
Law enforcement officials told Russian media that Novak and his wife were “extorted” by a group of men who were after his cryptocurrency holdings.
When the couple arrived at a villa, the suspects allegedly held them captive and demanded access to Novak’s crypto wallet.
Authorities say Novak’s home had been ransacked prior to his disappearance, with several electronic devices, including wallets and hard drives, missing.
Before losing contact with friends, Novak reportedly sent frantic messages claiming he was “stuck in the mountains on the Oman border” and urgently needed $200,000.
According to reports, when the kidnappers realized Novak’s digital wallets were empty, they killed both victims, dismembered their remains, and scattered body parts across several locations, including trash bins at a shopping center.
Investigators later found human remains in a remote area near the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve.
Officials confirmed that both victims had been dismembered and buried in shallow graves.
“According to preliminary information, Novak and his wife were kidnapped for ransom. When the criminals realized they wouldn’t get the money, they killed both of them,” a law enforcement source told Komsomolskaya Pravda.
The couple’s mobile phones last transmitted a signal on Oct. 4 from Cape Town, South Africa, before going permanently offline.
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Russian investigators have since launched a joint investigation with Dubai authorities, who described the case as “complex and deeply disturbing.”
Svetlana Petrenko, a spokesperson for Russia’s Investigative Committee, said the murderers were part of an organized group that had help in orchestrating the abduction.
“The investigation has established that the killers had accomplices who helped organise the abduction,” she said.
“They rented cars and premises where the victims were held by force. After the murder, the perpetrators disposed of the knives and the victims’ personal belongings, leaving them in different emirates.”
Authorities believe the suspects fled the UAE and returned to Russia shortly after the killings.
So far, eight people have been arrested in connection with the murders, including several former investors who had been defrauded by Novak and one ex-member of Vladimir Putin’s Interior Ministry.
Three of the suspects are accused of physically carrying out the killings, while four others allegedly helped plan the attack, purchasing knives believed to have been used in the murders.
Three suspects were detained across Stavropol, Krasnodar, and St. Petersburg. All remain in custody.
The identity and role of the eighth suspect remain unclear. Police have not disclosed whether the knives were purchased before or after the kidnappers decided to kill the couple.
Before his disappearance, Novak promoted himself as the founder of Fintopio, a payment platform and crypto wallet service that raised roughly $500 million from investors in China, the Middle East, and other regions, according to Russian reports.
After securing the funds, he allegedly disappeared, leaving behind employees and investors who never saw their money again.
Earlier this month, Fintopio issued a public statement saying it would temporarily suspend its crypto wallet operations to “review our operations and determine the best path forward.”
This was not Novak’s first brush with the law. In 2020, he was convicted of fraud and sentenced to six years in prison for his role in a case involving another crypto firm, Transcrypt, according to Fontanka. He relocated to the UAE in 2023 after being released on parole.
Authorities say that Novak’s death highlights an increasingly violent global trend involving cryptocurrency crime.
As the digital asset market continues to grow, incidents of physical assaults, kidnappings, and extortion targeting crypto holders have surged.
One emerging tactic, known as “wrench attacks,” involves criminals using force to extract passwords or access codes directly from victims.
These attacks often target wealthy crypto investors or executives known to have large digital holdings.
Earlier this year, on Jan. 21, 2025, French tech entrepreneur David Balland, co-founder of the crypto company Ledger, was kidnapped along with his wife from their home in central France.
The kidnappers demanded a ransom in cryptocurrency, part of which was paid before police intervened. Authorities managed to rescue the couple and arrested at least nine suspects.
In another case in May, the father of a crypto millionaire was abducted, and kidnappers demanded between 5 and 7 million euros in ransom, according to France24.
A source said one of the man’s fingers had been cut off during the ordeal. Police later arrested seven people in connection with that abduction.
Violent attacks tied to cryptocurrency have also been reported in Paris. On Aug. 5, a man was beaten and robbed of a hard drive containing €2 million worth of Bitcoin after being ambushed outside the Peninsula Hotel near the Arc de Triomphe.
The suspects, believed to be linked to a nearby nightclub, allegedly confronted the victim and demanded 400,000 euros before abducting him.
Police later arrested five suspects in the 8th arrondissement, recovering evidence that suggested they were attempting to collect a debt by force.
Investigators in that case said the suspects took the victim’s iPhone and hard drive after physically assaulting him.
The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed that all five were in custody and that hearings were ongoing.
They will pay big time in or out of prison.