Kidnappers of Ledger co-founder and his partner arrested after gigantic manhunt

Thursday January 23 in the afternoon, in the south of Essonne, a gendarmerie operation targeted two vehicles. Inside, three men and the companion of David Balland, French figure in the cryptocurrency sector and co-founder of the Ledger company. It is the epilogue of a forty-eight hour manhunt which made it possible to find the entrepreneur, released by the GIGN twenty-four hours earlier, and his partner.

The couple was kidnapped in the early morning of Tuesday January 21 from their home, in the town of Méreau, near Vierzon (Cher), where Ledger's headquarters are located. Forced to get into two vehicles, the man and woman were separated.

The identity of the kidnappers has not been revealed, but ten people were taken into custody, the Paris prosecutor's office announced during a press conference on Thursday evening. The hostage takers demanded a “large ransom in cryptocurrencies”according to the Paris prosecutor's office.

The couple was not chosen at random: David Balland co-founded, in 2014, the company Ledger, one of the flagship companies in the cryptocurrency sector in France. Its secure physical wallets, deemed particularly robust, are very popular with investors – the company is valued at around 1.3 billion euros.

The company's CEO, Eric Larchevêque, whom an online rumor had initially named as the victim of the kidnapping, said this Thursday evening on social networks his “tremendous relief” after the release of the two victims, and expressed his thanks to the “law enforcement, with a particular mention for the GIGN”.

Ten arrests, 230 gendarmes mobilized

Opened on Tuesday by the Bourges public prosecutor's office, then subsequently transferred to Paris and its interregional jurisdiction specializing in the fight against organized crime and delinquency, the investigation initially promises to be particularly complex. To deliver their ransom demand, sent to another Ledger co-founder, the kidnappers used a WhatsApp account linked to a phone number in Southeast Asia, as well as a VPN (virtual private network), making their tracking very difficult. The investigators then decide to send a bitcoin (around 100,000 euros) in order to save time and try to trace the transaction.

According to information from Mondeit was the arrest of a suspicious vehicle by the Vierzon anti-crime brigade (BAC) which allowed the investigation to gain momentum: on board the vehicle, which was stolen, a man admitted to part of the group which kidnapped the Balland couple. The use of his phone makes it possible to trace the trace of another phone, geolocated in Châteauroux. When the GIGN intervened at the address where the cell phone was located, they found Mr. Balland, alive but injured: furious at not receiving the ransom, his captors severed his finger, and sent the video of the mutilation to Ledger .

His companion, however, is not there. The search is redoubled, while a very large device, including 230 gendarmes, including 91 GIGN agents and specialized technical teams, is already deployed. His trace was finally found, Thursday at midday, in Etampes (Essonne), thanks to a combination of cross-checks. She was in a vehicle, tied up, but in good health. Six suspects are arrested by the police.

Acts punishable by life imprisonment

In this case, ten people in total, nine men and one woman, aged 20 to 40, were arrested. Most were already known to the police, according to the Paris prosecutor's office. A judicial investigation must be opened on Friday, January 24, into charges of kidnapping and sequestration by an organized gang, accompanied by acts of torture or barbarity, and extortion with weapons. Acts punishable by life imprisonment.

On December 31, 2024, the father, mother and sister of a French influencer specializing in cryptocurrencies were kidnapped and held captive for several hours in Ain – again, a ransom was demanded. The mother and sister were released by the police after the influencer raised the alarm. His father was found twenty-four hours after his kidnapping, 600 kilometers from home. Here again, it was the check of a suspicious vehicle by the police which made it possible to find the man, tied up, doused in gasoline and locked in the trunk of the vehicle. No link has yet been established between the two cases.