Three Canadian Armed Forces Members Charged in Kidnapping of Crypto Exchange Owner

In brief

• Toronto police have laid 82 charges against seven men, including three Canadian Armed Forces members, over the July abduction of a crypto exchange owner.
• Police allege the victim was abducted at gunpoint, handcuffed and assaulted while the suspects tried to gain access to his crypto and business security systems.
• Searches turned up guns with 3D-printed parts, two silencers, drugs and more than 2,700 rounds of ammunition, about 2,500 of them stolen from the military.

Toronto police have arrested seven men, three of them members of the Canadian Armed Forces, over the abduction of the owner of a cryptocurrency exchange, the Toronto Police Service announced on Wednesday.

Investigators have laid 82 charges, including kidnapping for ransom and numerous firearms offenses. Police did not name the victim or the exchange.

Police allege the victim was targeted as he approached his vehicle near Finch Avenue East and Bayview Avenue on July 25, 2026, then abducted at gunpoint, handcuffed and assaulted while the suspects tried to gain access to cryptocurrency assets and business-related security systems. He was later released after being threatened and warned not to contact police.

"The victim was allegedly targeted because of his access to cryptocurrency assets," Chief Superintendent Joe Matthews told reporters, CityNews reported.