Two Ukrainians Arrested Amid Crypto Murder Case In Vienna

Two Ukrainian men have been arrested after forcing a 21-year-old to surrender his crypto wallet keys and then burning him alive in his car.

Two Ukrainian men have been arrested after a brutal killing in Vienna left a 21-year-old student dead in his burned Mercedes. 

Police say the victim was forced to surrender his crypto wallet passwords before being killed in late November.

The charred body was discovered shortly after midnight on November 26 in the Donaustadt district. Fire alarms at a nearby housing complex first alerted authorities to the scene. 

When firefighters and police arrived, they found the victim’s remains inside a Mercedes with Ukrainian license plates.

The Attack Began at a Vienna Hotel

The violence started earlier that evening at the SO/Vienna hotel. Security footage shows the victim being confronted by two Ukrainian men in the underground parking garage. 

The suspects were also reportedly aged 19 and 45.

A hotel guest heard a loud dispute and notified the front desk. Staff contacted the police, but the three men had already left. The victim was then driven in his own car to Donaustadt, where the assault took place.

Police say the attackers beat the 21-year-old severely during the robbery. His teeth were knocked out during the beating, and investigators believe he suffocated on blood from head injuries before flames consumed the vehicle.

The assailants forced the victim to give up passwords to two crypto wallets, and police later confirmed those wallets had been completely drained. Officers also recovered a large amount of US dollars from one suspect during the arrest.

A melted gasoline canister was found in the back seat of the Mercedes. Fire investigators determined the blaze was deliberately set using gasoline (petrol).

Suspects Fled to Ukraine Hours After Killing

Austrian police used several methods to identify the attackers. They reviewed surveillance footage from the hotel garage and a nearby gas station. Border crossing records also showed both suspects left Austria for Ukraine just hours after the murder.

The 19-year-old and 45-year-old were arrested in Ukraine on Saturday, three days after crossing the border. While the sequence of events points to financial robbery, police have not issued a formal statement about the motive.

The cleared-out crime scene | source: 0e24

Local media outlet OE24 reported the victim may have been the son of a deputy mayor in Kharkiv. 

However, authorities have only confirmed the victim was a 21-year-old Ukrainian citizen. Some reports say that his father travelled to Vienna to help with identification, even though police have not verified this detail.

At the request of Ukrainian authorities, the case will be transferred to Ukraine for prosecution, and the suspects will not be extradited back to Austria.

Related Reading: South Korea Charges Police Officers Amid Bribery Case With Illegal Crypto Exchanges

Physical Attacks on Crypto Holders Are Rising

This Vienna murder is part of a disturbing trend across multiple countries. Criminals are increasingly targeting crypto holders through physical violence rather than digital hacking.

Europe has seen the most attacks this year. Jameson Lopp, chief security officer at Casa also has a database tracking these crimes. He has documented nearly 70 attacks globally this year alone, with more than 30% occurring in Europe.

France recently charged 25 suspects in a network of kidnapping plots. The group allegedly coordinated abductions to force victims to transfer crypto assets. 

Notably, some of those charged were teenagers and minors.

A Belgian court sentenced three men to 12 years each for a crypto kidnapping case earlier this year. The crime involved ransom demands tied to a large digital asset portfolio.

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