Kidnapping in Isère: the mastermind of the abduction was in Morocco

On January 25th last, Jean’s daily life plunged into horror. At dawn, three hooded men burst into the home of this retiree from Voiron. Immediately, the blows rained down. The kidnappers had only one objective: to obtain the codes of the digital wallets of his son, an entrepreneur in cryptocurrency. Convinced that the latter was a millionaire, they demanded a ransom of three million euros.

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This was followed by a bloody drift between Isère and Drôme. Sequestered in an associative premises, the septuagenarian underwent extremely violent abuse. His assailants slashed his cheek and tried to sever one of his fingers with a hammer and knife in order to film videos intended to terrorize his son. "The goal was for your son to bring out the millions," his torturers told him during these sixteen hours of torment.

The investigation shows a pyramidal criminal organization whose summit would be located outside of France. According to the information from Franceinfo, the sponsor of this kidnapping has been located in Morocco. This man, who directs the operations remotely via his phone, is suspected of being the mastermind of at least five other recent kidnappings committed in Isère and Haute-Savoie.

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The perpetrators, aged 19 to 23, are described as simple "small hands" recruited on social networks. Acting with operational discipline, these young delinquents serve as cannon fodder for principals protected by geographical distance. In the case of Jean, the three kidnappers were apprehended by the BRI of Lyon just after having released their victim in the middle of the forest.