A family in northern France was tied up during a predawn home invasion in which four armed intruders allegedly forced the father to authorize the transfer of about €40,000 in cryptocurrency.

According to the reported account, the attackers entered a home in Vendin-le-Vieil at around 4 a.m., restrained the parents and their two children with black tape, and separated the father from the rest of the family to gain access to his digital assets.

Raid focused on access to crypto accounts

The four men were described as dressed in black and armed with a knife and an iron bar. After entering the house, they allegedly bound all four family members and then isolated the father while keeping the mother and children under guard.

Investigators say the assailants obtained account codes and login details from the father. That access reportedly allowed them to move roughly €40,000 in cryptocurrency during the attack.

Family held for hours before help arrived

The mother and the two children were reportedly watched for about two hours while the father was being pressured to provide the information needed to reach the family’s digital holdings.

By the time firefighters arrived at around 7 a.m., the cryptocurrency had already been transferred, according to the report.

Investigators see signs of coordination

Authorities noted that the attackers were said to have remained on the phone throughout the raid with a remote coordinator. They reportedly spoke Arabic during the operation, which meant the family could not understand the conversation.

That detail has led investigators to suspect the break-in was not an improvised robbery but part of a more organized effort focused specifically on crypto assets.

Part of a wider pattern in France

The case fits into a broader pattern of physical attacks linked to cryptocurrency holders in France. The report says the country accounts for a large share of documented crypto-related physical attacks in Europe.

French authorities are now pursuing both sides of the case: the violent home invasion itself and the blockchain trail left by the transfer. The next confirmed step is the effort to trace the stolen funds and identify the people involved.

Source: news.bitcoin.com