Adam Iza, 25, known for his cryptocurrency business in California, pleaded guilty to charges that he organized the attempted kidnapping of a couple in Connecticut. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, prosecutors will seek a minimum sentence of 14 years in prison for Iza at a hearing on August 12.
starting point of the incident
According to the investigation file, the background of the incident is based on a fight between Veer Chetal and James Schwab, Adam Iza’s alleged accomplice, in a nightclub in Miami in mid-2024. In subsequent weeks, Chetal and two others posed as technical support staff for Google and a cryptocurrency exchange and stole 4,100 Bitcoins from a Washington resident, court records said. It was reported that this amount was worth approximately 245 million dollars.
According to federal prosecutors, Adam Iza and James Schwab planned to use Veer Chetal’s parents as leverage to obtain some of the stolen Bitcoin.
Prosecutors also noted that Chetal and his entourage used the allegedly stolen assets for luxury vehicles, jewelry, rental mansions and expensive entertainment expenses. While Chetal pleaded guilty last November, the other two defendants in the case denied the charges.
The kidnapping plan quickly collapsed
According to court records, on August 25, 2024, six people put the plan into action by rear-ending the Lamborghini SUV occupied by Sushil and Radhika Chetal near Danbury High School in Connecticut. The vehicle was blocked by a white van, the couple was forcibly removed from the vehicle and Sushil Chetal was hit with a baseball bat. The two victims were then tied with tape and taken to the minibus.
The incident was reported immediately, with multiple witnesses in the area calling the police. It was stated that an off-duty FBI agent who was in the area by chance also supported the intervention. Security forces located the minibus within minutes. During the pursuit, the vehicle crashed, four people were caught trying to escape on foot, and the other two people were found in a nearby rented house.
According to the Associated Press, all six Florida residents who carried out the kidnapping at the site pleaded guilty; Two of them were sentenced to 11 years in prison, while the others are awaiting sentencing.
In this case, Iza pleaded guilty to conspiracy to interfere with predatory trade, which is considered under the Hobbs Act in the USA and carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years.
There is a separate federal lawsuit in California
Adam Iza’s name doesn’t just appear in the Connecticut file. Iza also pleaded guilty in the Central District of California in January to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and tax evasion, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Prosecutors are asking for a 35-year prison sentence in this case.
Prosecutor’s office records stated that Iza managed a crypto trading company called Zort while living in a mansion in Bel Air and spent approximately $100,000 a month on private security. Allegedly, this security structure was provided through the company founded by Eric Chase Saavedra, an officer in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, and the law enforcement personnel on duty were also used in this structure.
According to court documents, Iza directed off-duty staff to intimidate, extort money and monitor people with whom he had feuds. In the same file, it was claimed that law enforcement databases were accessed illegally, search warrants were issued on false grounds, and in one case, the victim was forced at gunpoint to transfer $25,000. The Department of Justice also reported that Iza admitted to gaining up to $37 million in illicit profits through improper access to Meta’s advertising accounts between 2020 and 2022.
Physical attacks targeting crypto asset holders are on the rise
The file also drew attention to the increase in physical attacks targeting crypto asset holders and their families. Blockchain security company CertiK recorded 34 confirmed attacks in the first four months of 2026 that attempted to seize digital assets using physical force. This number is 41% higher than the same period last year. The estimated total loss is around 101 million dollars.
Mini dictionary: Wrench attack is the name given to the use of physical violence or threats to obtain the digital asset owner’s password or wallet access. CertiK is a cybersecurity company working in the field of blockchain security and monitoring on-chain risks.
Similar events were seen in different states of the USA and Europe. In May, three men from Tennessee were indicted in California for allegedly targeting crypto asset holders by posing as delivery drivers, with one victim being forced to transfer approximately $6.5 million under threat of a gun. In France, at the end of April, 88 suspects, including more than 10 children, were charged within the scope of organized crypto kidnapping files. CertiK predicts that if the current pace continues, approximately 130 similar events may occur by the end of the year.
The sentencing hearing in Iza’s Connecticut case is scheduled for August 12. There is no sentencing date yet publicly announced for the case in California. Iza’s attorneys did not comment or respond to requests for either filing, according to the Associated Press.
