Texas brothers federally charged in $8M cryptocurrency kidnapping in MN

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Two Texas brothers are now facing federal charges for allegedly holding a Minnesota family hostage at gunpoint for hours and taking more than $8 million in cryptocurrency.  

Federal kidnapping charges

What's new:

Raymond Christian Garcia, 23, and Isiah Angelo Garcia, 24, are facing federal charges for the "kidnapping and cryptocurrency heist" of a Grant, Minnesota, family. The armed incident also led to the Mahtomedi Public Schools to cancel its homecoming football game due to law enforcement activity in the area.  

"A violent kidnapping that stole $8 million and silenced a homecoming game is not just a crime. It is a blow to the sense of safety of everyone in Minnesota," said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson in a provided statement Thursday. "This is not normal. Minnesotans should not accept wild violence and thievery as normal. Every Minnesotan deserves to live in peace and a life unaffected by rampant crime."

The federal kidnapping charges are in addition to the state charges of kidnapping, first-degree burglary and first-degree aggravated robbery. 

The brothers are scheduled to make their first appearance in federal court on Thursday. 

Crypto-kidnapping heist

The backstory:

According to the court records, a 911 call was received at approximately 4:45 p.m. on Sept. 19 from someone in Grant, Minnesota, stating that he and his family had been kidnapped and were being held hostage at gunpoint in their home. 

The complaint details that at around 7:45 a.m., a man was taking out the garbage when the armed brothers allegedly forced him back into the garage and bound his hands with zip ties. The men then woke up the man’s son and wife in the house, also binding them. 

Over the next nine hours, Raymond Garcia allegedly held the family hostage while armed with an AR-15-style rifle. Police said the upstairs bedroom door was tied shut with wire and needed to be cut in order to free them, according to the complaint. 

Meanwhile, Isiah Garcia, armed with a shotgun, allegedly forced the man to log into his cryptocurrency wallet and transfer funds to an unknown account, charges state. After learning of a separate hard drive-style cryptocurrency wallet kept at the family cabin in Jacobson, Minnesota, Isiah Garcia allegedly forced the man into the truck and drove three hours to make the additional transfer.

The U.S. Attorney's Office valued the cryptocurrency at $8 million, a figure drastically higher than the more than $72,000 cited in the county criminal complaint.

According to the county complaint, the victim believed some of his crypto account information had been leaked during a data breach. The charges note that the men were frequently on the phone with an "unknown third party who directed [them] to transfer the cryptocurrency."

Brothers arrested in Texas

The investigation:

According to the federal complaint, Raymond Garcia was reportedly spotted on a nearby walking path and fled into the woods when officers approached. The following morning, a nearby car was reported stolen. 

After returning to Texas, Raymond Garcia reported that his AR-15 had been stolen, but authorities found a shipping box in his home with the same serial number as the firearm recovered in Minnesota. The search also uncovered several phones, computers and gun cases, but no cryptocurrency was found, the complaint said. 

Ultimately, both brothers were arrested in Texas. In a post-Miranda interview, Isiah Garcia allegedly admitted that he and Raymond Garcia drove to Minnesota and held the family at gunpoint. 

According to the complaint, Isiah Garcia rented a car near Houston, Texas on Sept. 16 and drove to Minnesota. The vehicle’s GPS placed the car near the victim’s home and a motel in Roseville. On Sept. 21, Isiah Garcia was taken into custody while driving the same rental car.