Man 'petrified' after gang raid home to steal cryptocurrency
A Bristol man has described being left "constantly so frightened, paranoid, and completely petrified" after three men violently broke into his home and attempted to steal cryptocurrency from him in the early hours of 15 May.
Terroll Paul, 31, Mohamed Samagassi, 37, and Pierre Madzou, 30, forced their way into the victim's Bristol residence before assaulting him and demanding he hand over a large amount of digital currency. The victim sustained a substantial head injury requiring hospital treatment during the attack.
All three men were arrested at the scene after the victim's teenage sister alerted police. On Thursday, Bristol Crown Court sentenced them to a combined 16 and a half years in prison after they pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary.
The Bristol incident forms part of a rapidly escalating global trend of violent physical attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimates that criminals stole more than $30 million through violent attacks against crypto holders in the first half of 2026 alone, with home invasions accounting for 37% of recorded incidents—a sharp increase from 14% the previous year.
These crimes, commonly referred to in the industry as "wrench attacks," involve physical violence or threats to compel cryptocurrency owners to surrender their digital assets. More than 215 such attacks have been documented globally since 2020, with cases surging by 75% between 2024 and 2025.
Victim's lasting trauma
In a personal statement read during sentencing, the victim detailed the profound psychological impact of the attack. "Before, I was bubbly, talkative and outgoing but now I would describe myself as tense and apprehensive," he said, adding that the incident had turned him into "a completely different person" who acts "out of character."
PC Gemma Childs, the investigating officer, praised both the victim and his younger sister for their courage throughout the ordeal. "The victim's younger sister has also shown extreme bravery, with her actions leading directly to the apprehension of the offenders and preventing her brother from further harm," Childs said. "This is something that no one should have to go through in their lives, especially not a child, and her quick thinking in this situation is nothing short of remarkable."
Sentencing details
Paul, of Barking in London, received a six-year prison sentence. Samagassi, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years, while Madzou, also of Barking in London, received five and a half years. Under UK law, aggravated burglary carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, with sentencing guidelines recommending custody terms ranging from one to 13 years depending on culpability and harm.
Growing threat to UK cryptocurrency holders
The Bristol case is not isolated. In December 2025, masked attackers in Solihull beat a cryptocurrency investor with hammers and threatened his pregnant wife, forcing the transfer of approximately $800,000 in cryptocurrency. Despite a £10,000 reward offered by Crimestoppers in September 2026, no arrests have been made in that case. Another UK trader reported losing nearly $800,000 in October 2026 after armed intruders broke into his home and forced him to transfer digital assets at knifepoint.
Bristol has experienced a burglary rate of 5.9 crimes per 1,000 residents as of July 2026—160% of the national average for England and Wales and the 11th highest among 99 UK cities. Burglary offences in the city have been trending upward, with a 16.1% annual increase and a 102% rise over three years.
The phenomenon extends beyond the UK. In the United States, a Florida man was convicted in 2023-2024 for leading a robbery crew that conducted violent home invasions targeting cryptocurrency owners across multiple states between September 2022 and July 2023, forcing victims to transfer cryptocurrency at gunpoint.
Security experts recommend that cryptocurrency holders use hardware wallets for long-term storage, keep seed phrases offline in secure locations, and enable two-factor authentication. However, these digital security measures offer limited protection against physical coercion attacks of the type seen in Bristol.
