Florida Teens Charged in $4 Million Crypto Heist, Police Crack Case

Three Florida teens have been formally charged for allegedly abducting a man and stealing millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency and NFTs at gunpoint after a cryptocurrency event in Las Vegas. The suspects – Austin Fletcher and Belal Ashraf from Pasco County, along with an unidentified accomplice – face charges of robbery, kidnapping, and extortion. Fletcher and Ashraf are being tried as adults, while the third suspect fled before their hearings, according to prosecutors. 30-year-old victim alleges he was abducted after hosting a cryptocurrency event in Downtown Las Vegas, where three young men forced him into a vehicle at gunpoint and transported him to a remote location. The victim claims the suspects threatened him and his father with harm if he did not comply, before forcing him to surrender his passwords and accounts. They allegedly communicated during the kidnapping on speakerphone, which the victim heard. Authorities are investigating a potential suspect vehicle traveling from Florida to Nevada, and recovered a firearm from a relative of one of the suspects in Mississippi.