A real estate salesperson in India was kidnapped and the kidnappers demanded 20 Bitcoins

An Indian bitcoin investor has been accused of planning a kidnapping and demanding bitcoin as ransom.

This is the first case in Punjab, northern India. According to Indian Express, a local trader was kidnapped by six unknown persons on May 30. The alleged mastermind is Deepak, a bank employee and stock market investor. According to reports, Deepak bought Bitcoin for investment purposes last year and then claimed that the company that sold him Bitcoin cheated him. The continuous losses in the stock market caused Deepak to be in debt of nearly 6 million rupees (about 925,000 US dollars), and eventually embarked on the road of crime.

Deepak, who is currently being held with his accomplices, chose local real estate sales as his target, posing as an "investment consultant". He lied that he was interested in buying a particular property and then kidnapped the victim when he met him.

The kidnappers then demanded a ransom of 20个比特币and released the victim six days later. As the case is still under investigation, many details have not been released. As for whether the victim's family paid the ransom, it has not yet been announced.

As bitcoin has gained popularity in the world's second-most populous country, criminal activity related to it has also increased in recent months. In late 2016, the Lucknow police received the first case of bitcoin-related fraud.

According to a senior official of the Indian Crime Investigation Department, more and more scammers are beginning to abuse digital currencies.

He said:

Fraud cases involving Bitcoin have become increasingly common. The popularity and acceptance of Bitcoin around the world has attracted a large number of new investors. However, the increased popularity has also opened up opportunities for scammers.

The lack of regulation for the Bitcoin industry and other digital currencies prompted the establishment of an intergovernmental virtual currency committee in early March. The committee is tasked with studying and launching a regulatory framework for digital currencies, and is expected to submit its findings to the Indian Ministry of Finance by the end of July. While some politicians have called for a total ban on digital currencies, local media reports have proven that the government is preparing a regulatory and legislative framework for Bitcoin. This way, Bitcoin can be regulated and taxed in India, which means it can be legalized.