In the latest in a string of violent crypto robberies, a four-person gang held a Canadian family hostage overnight and stole about $2 million CAD ($1.6 million USD) in Bitcoin. The attackers threatened to kill the family, waterboarded the mother and father, and sexually assaulted their daughter after invading their Vancouver-area home. The crime occurred in April 2024, but the details of the scene were revealed last week in a sentencing report by a British Columbia judge, first reported by CBC.
Beijing's National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center (CVERC) said the theft was not the work of outside hackers. Instead, the agency called it a "state-level operation" allegedly orchestrated by U.S. intelligence. The seized Bitcoin now sits at roughly $13.3 billion. The U.S. Department of Justice said the action followed standard legal procedures. Still, China called the move a "state-level cyber theft." Analysts say the dispute has turned a legal matter into a major geopolitical standoff.