RABAT: Moroccan authorities have arrested a French-Moroccan man suspected of involvement in recent kidnappings in France targeting individuals with crypto wealth, a source with knowledge of the arrest said on Wednesday.
French Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin thanked Morocco for the arrest in a post on X, without giving further details of the charges or incidents.
The 24-year-old man, named by a separate Moroccan police source as Bajjou Badiss Mohamed AmiDe, was subject to an Interpol red notice and wanted by France on charges including participation in organized crime, kidnapping, and extortion.
The police source said that since Bajjou is a dual national, he will not be extradited and will be tried in Morocco on the charges he is facing in France.
French authorities had passed details of the charges to Moroccan counterparts so that the man can face justice in Morocco, the source added.
The Paris prosecutor’s office did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.
France has seen a wave of kidnappings targeting the crypto sector, including one in January of a co-founder of French crypto company Ledger, which left the victim missing a finger.
This month, a botched attempt to kidnap a crypto company CEO’s daughter on a busy Paris street left crypto entrepreneurs in France fearing for their safety and was seen by some as a symptom of France’s growing problem with organized crime.
Suspected crypto kidnappings mastermind arrested in Morocco
https://arab.news/nspmt
Suspected crypto kidnappings mastermind arrested in Morocco
- France thanks Morocco for arresting 24-year-old after kidnappings targeting French crypto entrepreneurs
Israel army says killed six Gaza militants despite ceasefire
- The military said that it had killed two of six militants it had identified adjacent to its troops in western Rafah and that tanks had fired on them
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said Wednesday it had killed six militants in an updated toll from an exchange of fire in Gaza the day before, accusing them of violating the ceasefire in the territory.
The military said in a statement late on Tuesday that it had killed two of six militants it had identified adjacent to its troops in western Rafah and that tanks had fired on them.
It said they were killed in an ensuing exchange of fire, including aerial strikes, while troops continued to search for the rest.
In a statement on Wednesday, the military said that “following searches that were conducted in the area, it is now confirmed that troops eliminated the six terrorists during the exchange of fire.”
It said the presence of the militants adjacent to troops and the subsequent incident were a “blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement.”
A security source in Gaza reported late on Tuesday that Israeli forces had “opened fire west of Rafah city.”
Under a truce that entered into force in October following two years of war between Israel and Hamas, Israeli forces in Gaza withdrew to positions behind a demarcation known as the “yellow line.”
The city of Rafah is located behind the yellow line, under Israeli army control. The area beyond the yellow line remains under Hamas authority.
Both sides have repeatedly accused the other of violating the ceasefire.
According to the health ministry in Gaza, which operates under Hamas authority, at least 165 children have been killed in Israeli attacks since the ceasefire began on October 10.
The UN children’s agency UNICEF said on Tuesday that at least 100 children — 60 boys and 40 girls — had been killed since the truce.
Israeli forces have killed a total of at least 447 Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect, according to the ministry.
The Israeli army says militants have killed three of its soldiers during the same period.
