Three teenagers, two of them aged 16, have been accused of abducting a wealthy man at gunpoint, driving him to a remote desert area in Nevada, and stealing $4 million from him in cryptocurrency. The 16-year-olds, Belal Ashraf and Austin Fletcher, and the unidentified third teen now face robbery, kidnapping, and extortion charges.
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According to KLAS, the incident took place in November 2024. Reportedly, the man, who also remains unidentified, called police and claimed that three teenagers had abducted him.
Police detail that the man was at a cryptocurrency event in downtown Las Vegas and, after parking his car in his apartment complex, the three suspects allegedly forced him into the back of a vehicle. There, they allegedly threatened his life if he didn’t comply.
“[The victim] was told if he complied, he would live to see another day, and if he did not comply, they had his dad and would kill him,” court documents obtained by the outlet allege. “[The victim] had a towel placed over his head and was told by the suspects not to look at them.”
Allegedly, the suspects threatened the man to give them his passwords and access to his financial accounts. Reportedly, the teenage boys were speaking with an unidentified man through the speakerphone. The suspects allegedly managed to steal a total of $4 million worth of cryptocurrency and NFTs.
The suspects then drove the man to a secluded desert area near the Nevada border in White Hills, Arizona. The man was forced to walk across the desert for approximately five miles, eventually reaching a gas station where he was able to call the authorities.
Arrested and Charged
Later, police managed to arrest two of the suspects. One was caught driving from Florida to Nevada. The other was arrested during a Mississippi vehicle stop. The third teenager suspect, however, is believed to have fled the country.
According to the court documents, the three teenagers were involved in several Florida high school disturbances. The three reportedly were “swearing in English and Arabic, and [Ashraf] was observed shoulder checking a school resource officer.” Additionally, they also screamed at an assistant principal.
Belal Ashraf and Austin Fletcher will be tried as adults, having been charged with robbery, kidnapping, and extortion. Las Vegas Justice Court Judge Noreen Demonte ordered Ahsraf to be released with electronic monitoring. Meanwhile, Las Vegas Justice Court Judge Daniel Westmeyer set Fletcher’s bail at $4 million.
A preliminary hearing for Ashraf and Fletcher was scheduled for June 2025.