Two brothers from Texas have admitted to their roles in a federal robbery case where prosecutors say they abducted a Minnesota family and forced the transfer of over $8 million in cryptocurrency. Isiah Angelo Garcia and Raymond Christian Garcia pleaded guilty on Thursday to a charge of interference with commerce by robbery, which could result in a maximum of 20 years in prison. U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen stated that the pleas hold the men accountable for their actions during the armed robbery.
According to court documents, the brothers traveled from Texas to Minnesota on September 19, 2025, to carry out the attack. The victims—a man, his wife, and their young son—were allegedly held at gunpoint for hours. While the wife and son were confined to the family home for about nine hours, the man was taken to a family cabin roughly three hours away, where he was forced to transfer the cryptocurrency from online accounts and hardware wallets. The case began to unravel when the victim’s son managed to call emergency services. Sheriff’s deputies later recovered a rifle and a shotgun, and surveillance footage helped tie the brothers to the crime. As part of their plea agreements, both men acknowledged that firearms were used to threaten the victims and have agreed to pay restitution of more than $8 million. Sentencing dates have not yet been announced.
This case comes amid a surge in physical attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders worldwide. Security firm CertiK reported in February that crypto-related kidnappings and assaults rose 75% in 2025 compared to the previous year, with losses estimated at $101 million in the first four months of 2026 alone. Earlier this month, another crypto kidnapping case resulted in a guilty plea in Connecticut, where a man admitted to conspiring to abduct the parents of a crypto millionaire linked to a theft of about 4,100 Bitcoin. In May, the wife of The Sandbox co-founder Sebastien Borget survived an attempted kidnapping at their home in France, where suspects posed as delivery workers. French authorities have launched a prevention platform as crypto-related kidnappings continue to climb, with officials reporting 41 such cases in the first four months of 2026—an average of one every 2.5 days.