A federal jury in North Carolina has ruled that Florida man Remy Saint-Felix orchestrated a series of violent home invasions in an effort to steal Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies from targeted victims.
Saint-Felix, a 24-year-old resident of West Palm Beach, Florida, led a group that targeted cryptocurrency owners across multiple states between September 2022 and July 2023.
The robberies took place in Durham, North Carolina, as well as Florida, Texas, and New York, involving home invasions, the kidnapping of residents, and forced transfers of their held cryptocurrencies.
In a particularly disturbing incident that occurred in April 2023, Saint-Felix and an accomplice attacked a victim in their own home, zip-tying them and threatening violence against the victim and their spouse. This attack resulted in the theft of over $150,000 worth of cryptocurrency.
At the time of this conviction, cryptocurrency-related crimes continue to be a significant issue. According to data from Chainalysis, while the total value of stolen cryptocurrencies decreased from $3.7 billion in 2022 to $1.7 billion in 2023, the number of individual hacker attacks actually increased from 219 to 231 during the same period.
However, the crimes committed by Saint-Felix and his crew introduced real-world dangers, as they employed sophisticated methods to identify and target victims, including unauthorized access to email accounts and physical surveillance. They also utilized encryption and anonymous financial transactions to avoid detection.
According to the Department of Justice’s announcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation played a key role in bringing Saint-Felix to justice, arresting him in July 2023 as he was en route to another home invasion in New York.
His 13 accomplices have already admitted to their involvement in the scheme. The jury found Saint-Felix guilty of nine charges, including conspiracy, kidnapping, Hobbs Act robbery, wire fraud, and using firearms to further violence.
He faces a minimum of seven years in prison and the possibility of a life sentence. Saint-Felix is scheduled to be sentenced on September 11th.
Edited by Andrew Hayward