Solihull crypto trader recounts hammer attack over forced crypto transfer
A West Midlands businessman says masked attackers broke into his Solihull home, beat him and his pregnant wife, and forced him to transfer large cryptocurrency savings.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A full-time cryptocurrency trader has described how three masked men broke into his home in Solihull, attacked him and his seven-months-pregnant wife, and forced him to transfer hundreds of thousands of pounds in digital coins.
The victim, who is being identified only as James, is a businessman from the West Midlands. He said the attack happened after he and his wife returned home. Video showed three people getting out of a car as they shut the door. The door was pushed open and he saw gloves and balaclavas.
In an interview, James said he fought back immediately. He punched the first intruder, who fell to the floor, while a second man pushed his wife onto the sofa and held a pillow over her face. She was seven months pregnant and screamed that she could not breathe. The first attacker got up, pulled a hammer from his pocket and swung it into James's forehead, he said. Two men then knelt on him and struck him with hammers on his face, the back of his head, his ribs and his knee. One attacker knelt on his wife's stomach, and James recalled her screaming that they would kill the baby.
The attackers demanded his phone. James realised they wanted his cryptocurrency. The men did not know how to use his crypto apps, and were being directed by someone on a video call. He heard a man on FaceTime tell them to show him everything on the phone and list the apps. They opened a wallet holding a large amount of funds. The man on the call threatened to stab his wife in the stomach and kill the baby and his wife if the money was not sent.
James used his laptop to transfer his entire crypto savings, hundreds of thousands of pounds in digital coins, to the man on the phone. The intruders also left with several expensive Rolex watches. His wife thought she was going into labour because of the stress, but the baby was safe.
Nine months later, James said the trauma is still obvious. He does not expect to recover his savings but wants the attackers and whoever directed them to be caught. He said people need to recognise them and call police. He still does not know how the criminals knew he had cryptocurrency savings, and he is warning others about the growing risk of so-called wrench attacks.
Cryptocurrency thefts and kidnappings have been reported in the UK, France, the US and the Philippines. Reports have included an attempted kidnapping of a crypto billionaire's daughter in France last year and another case in the UK this year. Unlike traditional finance, crypto holders are their own bank and must keep coins safe in physical devices or digital wallets. Once coins are transferred to someone else, there is often no way to get them back.
The UK charity Crimestoppers is offering a £10,000 reward for information about James's case.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| Crimestoppers offered a £10,000 reward for information about the case. | |
| During an attack, a victim transferred hundreds of thousands of pounds in cryptocurrency to a man on a video call. | |
| Reports indicate physical robberies of digital currencies such as Bitcoin are becoming more common. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
This longer bulletin leads with the victim's first-person account and gives the most graphic detail of the violence. It frames the case as part of a wider rise in physical crypto robberies, explains self-custody risk, and ends with a direct warning about so-called wrench attacks. It does not name Solihull or the West Midlands.
- “I see him put a hammer out of his pocket and he just swung it sideways, straight through my forehead.”
- “So he's got my phone like that and his phone like that, and I can hear the guy on FaceTime saying, show me everything on his phone, show me what apps he's got.”
- “Unlike traditional finance, in crypto, you are your own bank, responsible for safekeeping of your own coins, either in physical devices or digital wallets.”
This bulletin is shorter and leads with the victim's location and business background, naming Solihull in the West Midlands. It gives a similar account of the attack but adds a global trend segment with an attempted kidnapping in France and another UK case. The tone remains serious and warning-led, though less graphic than the longer bulletin.
- “a businessman from the West Midlands has told the BBC how he and his heavily pregnant wife were attacked by masked Intruders who broke into their home in Solihull and forced him to transfer hundreds of thousands of pounds in online funds”
- “Physical attacks are increasing around the world”
- “UK charity Crimestoppers is offering a 10,000 pound reward for information that could help the police investigation”
Broadcast Timeline
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