Florida teens arrested for allegedly kidnapping Las Vegas man, stealing $4M in cryptocurrency and stranding him 70 miles away in the Mojave Desert — leaving him to hike for miles for help

Victim stranded in desert, police identify suspects on video

Law enforcement matched a gun linked to one teen’s family with images from social media, revealing that all three teens were connected with the same Florida high school.

Authorities charged Ashraf and Fletcher as adults with kidnapping, robbery and extortion.

Fletcher’s bail is set at $4 million, while Ashraf awaits release under electronic monitoring. KTSM 9 News reports that the third suspect may have left the country. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.

The suspects are accused of stealing millions in cryptocurrency and NFTs from the victim’s accounts.

The $4-million heist in Las Vegas underscores a stark reality: holding large amounts of cryptocurrency can make you a target for violent criminals.

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Crypto theft on the rise

Digital assets like bitcoins are designed for fast and anonymous transfers. That means they’re hard to trace if stolen.

And unlike money in a traditional bank, most crypto holdings are not federally insured — leaving victims with limited recourse to recover their digital assets if stolen.

Storing cryptocurrency private keys offline in a physical device, or cold wallet — as opposed to online in a device with an internet connection — can reduce the risk of cryptocurrency theft.

But even that cold storage option is not foolproof. Unless backups are carefully stored, a lost or damaged cold wallet can result in catastrophic loss.

Moreover, a thief can steal a “cold wallet,” or force a user to hand over passwords.

According to the FTC, Americans lost over $12.5 billion to crypto-related fraud in 2024. As digital assets become mainstream, experts warn that casual investors and high-net-worth holders are vulnerable.

Some exchanges have begun rolling out stronger authentication and wallet recovery tools. For now, users shoulder much of the responsibility.

Experts recommend enabling multi-factor authentication and storing recovery keys in multiple secure locations.

As this case shows, theft doesn’t always happen behind a keyboard in the world of digital currency. Sometimes, it’s face-to-face, and at gunpoint — where the physical and psychological risks are of greater concern than cryptocurrency losses.