A 23-year-old Ukrainian tourist fell victim to an armed cryptocurrency heist on the island of Phuket, Thailand.
This resulted in the forced transfer of approximately 8.56 million baht (500,000 USDT). The incident, reported to Kamala police station, reveals a concerning intersection of cryptocurrency crime and physical violence in the tourist destination.
Ukrainian tourist loses 500,000 USDT
According to the victim, Viacheslav Leibov’s report to local authorities, the incident occurred after accepting an invitation from his Ukrainian friend, Alfred Chernyshuk, 18, to visit his room around 10:45 PM on Friday.
Arman Grigoryan, a 21-year-old Armenian citizen, met Leibov upon his arrival and took him to his room.
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According to the Bangkok Post, the situation took a violent turn when Leibov attempted to use the bathroom, where two masked men were lying in wait.
The assailants proceeded to restrain him with ropes and cable ties, threatening physical violence if he refused to comply with their demands.
The perpetrators, armed with a hammer and a long knife, threatened to break the victim’s fingers unless he transferred 500,000 USDT to their specified account. Under duress, Leibov negotiated the amount down by half but still ended up transferring approximately 8.56 million baht worth of cryptocurrency.
Following the transfer, the assailants tied Leibov to a bed and warned him against reporting the incident before fleeing the scene. After managing to free himself, the victim confirmed with hotel reception that the suspects, Grigoryan and Chernyshuk, had indeed rented the room.
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Leibov immediately attempted to locate the suspects at Phuket airport before filing an official report at the Kamala police station.
