Canadian Family Suffers Violent $1.6M Bitcoin Wrench Attack — Attacker Sentenced to Seven Years

A court in British Columbia has revealed the distressing details of a violent home invasion that occurred in 2024, where a Canadian family was brutally assaulted, waterboarded, sexually assaulted, and robbed of $1.6 million in cryptocurrency.

Key Takeaways

A Canadian family experienced a brutal home invasion in 2024, resulting in a loss of $1.6 million in cryptocurrency.
Four attackers pretended to be Canada Post workers to gain entry, where they assaulted and waterboarded the family.
One attacker, Tsz Wing Boaz Chan, has been sentenced to seven years in prison, with others still unidentified.
The number of physical attacks on cryptocurrency holders is rising, correlating with the increasing value of digital assets.

Canadian Family Suffers Violent $1.6M Bitcoin Wrench Attack — Attacker Sentenced to Seven Years

This month, the sentencing report highlighted one of the most severe “wrench attack” incidents in Canada’s recent history.

Attack Scene

Attackers Used Deceit to Target Family for Cryptocurrency

The court documents describe how the incident transpired on the night of April 27-28, 2024. Four men stormed into the family’s home after two of them pretended to be Canada Post workers delivering a package.

When the father opened the door, the intruders rushed inside, secured the door, and soon after, two additional accomplices joined them.

The family—father, mother, and daughter—were bound with zip ties and subjected to several hours of escalating violence as the attackers insisted on accessing the father’s cryptocurrency.

Prosecutors noted that the father had previously discussed his cryptocurrency investments within the Chinese community, leading the assailants to believe he held substantial Bitcoin assets.

Initially, the assailants demanded 200 BTC, later lowering their request to 100 BTC when the father was unable to comply. Ultimately, they managed to extract about $1.6 million in cryptocurrency before fleeing.

Both parents were waterboarded and faced threats of severe bodily harm, while the daughter endured horrific treatment, including forced undressing and filming, accompanied by verbal abuse.

Eventually, the attackers wrapped the victims in blankets and left the room briefly, providing the daughter a chance to partially escape her restraints.

She managed to flee the house and contacted 911, which initiated police action.

In May, one of the attackers, Tsz Wing Boaz Chan, admitted guilt to charges of breaking and entering, unlawful confinement, and sexual assault.

Earlier this month, he was sentenced to seven years in prison. Updates on the other suspects have not been released by authorities.

Growing Global Trend of Violent Crypto Robberies

This case emerges during a period of escalating physical attacks aimed at cryptocurrency holders around the world.

A report by CryptoNews in September highlighted a staggering 169% increase in incidents where criminals resort to physical force to obtain wallet access since February, according to data collected by Bitcoin security advocate Jameson Lopp.

His database has recorded over 60 wrench-style attacks in 2025 alone, surpassing the total for all of 2024 by 33%, with France accounting for the highest number at 14 cases.

In the United States, another notable incident involved a San Francisco resident who was robbed of $11 million in cryptocurrency during a home invasion by someone pretending to be a delivery driver, with no arrests reported yet.

Additionally, a series of high-profile kidnappings and violent extortion cases have emerged across Europe and Asia. For instance, in January, Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife were kidnapped in France, experiencing a 48-hour ordeal that resulted in Balland suffering severe injury.

French prosecutors have noted that criminal networks increasingly utilize fake delivery uniforms, stolen service vehicles, and intelligence-gathering techniques to target crypto investors and their families.

Reports of similar attacks have surfaced in Thailand, Israel, Belgium, the U.K., and various locations in the United States. Notably, six men in Chicago faced charges this year in connection with a kidnapping plot involving $15 million in stolen cryptocurrency.

Moreover, in September, two brothers in Texas were charged with federal kidnapping for holding a Minnesota family at gunpoint for nine hours while siphoning off $8 million in cryptocurrency.

Analysts point out that the rise in physical crimes corresponds with the growth of the cryptocurrency market. As the values of Bitcoin and other digital assets soar, attackers are shifting focus from cyber theft to physical threats.

A report from the security firm CertiK indicated that cryptocurrency users lost a staggering $2.47 billion due to hacks and scams in the first half of 2025, which has led some criminal organizations to adopt more violent methods offline.