A 35-year-old French magistrate and her 67-year-old mother were rescued last week after being held captive for 30 hours in a cryptocurrency ransom plot, marking the latest in a series of similar kidnappings in France.

The ordeal began when the magistrate's partner, who works at a cryptocurrency startup, received a disturbing photo of his partner with threats that she would be mutilated if a cryptocurrency ransom wasn't paid. He immediately reported the incident to French authorities on Thursday morning.

The report triggered a massive manhunt involving approximately 160 officers across multiple agencies. The women were being held in a garage in Bourg-lès-Valence in southern France's Drôme region.

Their escape came when they managed to take advantage of their captors' absence. "They were able to take advantage of the absence of their captor to free themselves, to call for help, in particular by banging forcefully on the garage door," Lyon prosecutor Thierry Dran said during a Friday press conference.

A neighbor heard the commotion and came to their aid. "I just came to take my car when I heard women hitting and screaming. I opened the door and two women came out; they were a little dirty. I was happy, they said thank you," the neighbor told BFMTV.

Following the rescue, French authorities have arrested six suspects in connection with the kidnapping, including a minor. Four men and one woman were detained, with two suspects apprehended while attempting to flee to Spain by bus. A sixth suspect, a minor, was arrested Sunday afternoon.

The incident is part of a troubling trend of cryptocurrency-related kidnappings in France. In January 2025, David Balland, cofounder of the crypto wallet company Ledger, was kidnapped along with his partner. His kidnappers cut off his finger before sending ransom demands. In May 2025, the father of a Malta-based cryptocurrency company executive was kidnapped in Paris, with his finger also being severed during the ordeal.

The magistrate and her mother were transported to a hospital immediately after their rescue. Authorities continue to investigate the case as part of their broader efforts to address the rising trend of crypto-related kidnappings.

Mark Madden