U.S. Tourist Robbed of $123,000 in Cryptocurrency by Uber Driver in London
An American tourist, 30-year-old Jacob Irwin-Cline, fell victim to a drugging and robbery scheme orchestrated by an Uber driver in London. The incident took place during his short layover in the UK, where he lost a staggering $123,000 in cryptocurrency.
Reports from local media reveal that after a night out in Soho, Cline hailed an Uber to return to his hostel. However, he unknowingly entered a different vehicle with a driver who claimed to be his assigned Uber driver.
The driver, who identified himself as “Mohammed,” managed to gain Cline’s trust and offered him a cigarette that was suspected to be laced with a potent sedative. As a result, Cline lost consciousness and woke up later on the street, realizing that his phone, which contained access to his crypto wallets, was missing.
Cline confirmed the significant loss of $123,000 and expressed little hope of recovering the stolen funds, despite reaching out to the FBI’s cybercrime unit. This unfortunate incident highlights the growing trend of crypto-related crimes targeting unsuspecting individuals, especially those holding substantial amounts of digital assets on unsecured devices.
This incident is not an isolated case, as recent events have shown an increase in crypto-related crimes worldwide. In France, the father of a crypto exchange founder was kidnapped for ransom, while the daughter and grandson of Paymium CEO Pierre Noizat were victims of a foiled abduction attempt in Paris.
These alarming incidents have prompted authorities to provide special protections for crypto professionals and their families, including priority police access and home security checks. Additionally, in the U.S., reports of teens kidnapping a man after a crypto event in Las Vegas and extorting millions in digital assets have raised concerns about the safety of cryptocurrency holders.