HARTFORD, Conn. — A man from Florida entered a guilty plea on Thursday regarding his involvement in the carjacking and kidnapping of a couple in Connecticut, an act that authorities described as a botched ransom scheme that may have been tied to a $240 million cryptocurrency theft.
Michael Rivas, a 19-year-old from Miami, was one of six individuals arrested following the incident in Danbury on August 25. He admitted to charges of kidnapping and conspiracy in federal court in Hartford, where two co-defendants are also expected to plead guilty on Friday.
According to police reports, the victims were driving a brand-new Lamborghini SUV when the suspects forcibly removed them from the vehicle, assaulted them, and placed them in a van while binding them. Bystanders promptly called the authorities. Four of the suspects were apprehended after abandoning their vehicles, including the van, and fleeing on foot, while the remaining two were later captured at an Airbnb property rented by the group. Fortunately, the couple sustained injuries but survived the traumatic experience.
Dressed in a light brown prison uniform and shackled during his court hearing, Rivas expressed remorse for his involvement, describing it as a “dumb” choice to aid one of his accomplices in seeking what he termed a “vendetta,” without going into further detail.
Rivas’s attorney, Brian Woolf, indicated that his client joined the scheme after being invited by a co-defendant, hoping to receive a portion of the ransom money, a decision he now regrets.
The conspiracy was reportedly initiated because the suspects believed the couple’s son had access to a wealth of digital currency, leading them to plan a ransom to be paid in cryptocurrency, as outlined in a federal indictment.
Just one week prior to the kidnapping, two individuals managed to steal $240 million worth of Bitcoin through a complex online and phone scam, subsequently engaging in extravagant purchases including cars, real estate, jewelry, and lavish nights out.
Although authorities have not formally established a connection between the kidnapping and the cryptocurrency theft, federal agents have informed local police that the FBI is probing whether the couple’s son was implicated in the digital currency heist. The names of the couple and their son have not been disclosed.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ross Weingarten refrained from commenting after the court proceedings on Thursday.
In mid-September, it was revealed that two men, Malone Lam, 20, and Jeandiel Serrano, 21, faced indictments on allegations of conspiracy related to the wire fraud and laundering of monetary instruments tied to the cryptocurrency theft. Court documents indicate that unnamed accomplices assisted Lam and Serrano in the scheme. Their legal representatives have not yet commented on the situation.
Prosecutors detailed in court documents that Lam, Serrano, and their unnamed accomplices impersonated technical support staff for Google and a cryptocurrency exchange while contacting the victim, who was assured that they could assist with a supposed security breach.
The victim, hailing from Washington, D.C., believed in their claims and granted them remote access to his computer on August 18, which allowed the alleged criminals to abscond with over 4,100 Bitcoin, worth more than $240 million at that time; today, that amount is nearly valued at $380 million.
Prosecutors stated that Serrano, based in Los Angeles, acknowledged in a federal interview using the stolen funds to purchase three cars totaling over $1 million and a watch worth $500,000. He also indicated that he possessed around $20 million of the victim’s currency and agreed to facilitate its transfer to the FBI.
Moreover, Lam, who is a Singaporean citizen with residences in Los Angeles and Miami, was reported to have spent lavishly, dropping hundreds of thousands of dollars at clubs in Los Angeles and acquiring custom luxury cars. He also rented two extravagant homes in Miami and bought a watch priced at $2 million along with a Lamborghini Revuelto exceeding $1 million in value.
At least $100 million of the pilfered funds remains unaccounted for, according to federal prosecutors.
Precisely one week after the cryptocurrency theft, the Danbury couple faced a terrifying ordeal in their hometown when they were forced from their SUV, rear-ended by a car belonging to one of the assailants. Surrounding vehicles then trapped them, and the group assaulted the man using a baseball bat while dragging the woman by her hair before placing them in a van where they were bound with duct tape, police reports indicate.
“I’m deeply remorseful for my irresponsible behavior,” Rivas told U.S. District Judge Sarala Nagala during the hearing, adding, “I should have known better.”
Rivas, along with the other five individuals involved, faces additional charges of kidnapping and assault in Connecticut state court, with all the men also having connections to Florida. The sentencing is slated for May 13, with both prosecution and defense agreeing on guidelines that suggest a sentence of approximately 11 to 14 years behind bars.
