Kidnapping of Ledger Co-Founder: Two More Indicted, Including Suspect Already in Custody

The investigation into the kidnapping of David Balland, co-founder of the French cryptocurrency company Ledger, has reached a new milestone. Two individuals, aged 26 and 25, were indicted on Thursday, April 10, and placed in pre-trial detention, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office and France’s National Jurisdiction for the Fight against Organized Crime (Junalco).

The charges are serious: abduction, kidnapping, unlawful detention with torture or acts of barbarity committed by an organized group, armed extortion by an organized group, money laundering, and criminal conspiracy.

A Carefully Orchestrated Commando Operation

The events took place in January. David Balland and his partner were abducted from their home in Vierzon, in central France, by a group of individuals who demanded a ransom in cryptocurrency. Balland was found bound the following day in Châteauroux, while his partner was located two days later in a parked car in the Essonne region.

The French GIGN (elite tactical unit) intervened, arresting several suspects and securing Balland’s release. He was hospitalized after the ordeal, having suffered a mutilation to his hand, according to the Paris public prosecutor.

Alleged Mastermind Already Behind Bars

One of the newly indicted suspects, a 26-year-old man, is believed to have orchestrated the kidnapping from his prison cell at Angers, where he has been in pre-trial detention since August 2023 for a similar case involving the kidnapping of a social media influencer’s father in the Sarthe region. His lawyer denies any involvement in the Ledger case.

Investigators believe the operation was coordinated via encrypted messaging platforms such as Telegram and Signal. According to the Paris prosecutor, some members of the group did not even know each other, suggesting the team was hastily assembled through online recruitment.

In total, nine individuals have now been indicted in this case, with several charged at the outset of the judicial investigation. Authorities continue to examine each suspect’s role in the operation and unravel the broader network behind the attack.