According to local reports, Dutch authorities have arrested a 27-year-old man from Amsterdam who held several people hostage at an Apple store while demanding 200 million euros ($230 million) in cryptocurrency for ransom.
The suspect who raided Apple’s flagship store located in the busy area of Leidseplein for unclear reasons wore camouflage and held a 44-year-old British national hostage. He was reportedly armed with a firearm which he pointed to the head of the hostage.
Unknown to the assailant, there was more than one hostage. Several people were hiding in the building with four others hiding in a closet on the ground floor of the Apple store.
Apple Store Hostage Saves the Day
The hostage situation, which lasted for about five hours, ended when the suspect asked the police for water. As the water was brought into the store by a robot, the hostage seized the opportunity to run for safety. He ran out of the store with the suspect chasing after him. Almost immediately, a police car hit the suspect hard, causing him to fall.
A robot was then sent to check him for explosives first, with laser sightings of police snipers pointing at him as he lay on the road.
Police Chief Frank Paauw praised the hostage for his bravery, saying, “The hostage has played a hero role. In a few split seconds, he escaped this hostage situation, otherwise, it would have been an even longer night and nasty night.”
Following the end of the hostage situation, about 70 people that were in the building, including the hostage, were safe and the area around the store was sealed off from the public. The suspect, who sustained serious injuries due to the car hit was taken to hospital while further probing into the incident continued.
In a similar incident of criminals asking for ransoms in Bitcoin, Coinfomania reported a Dutch letter bomber who demanded a Bitcoin ransom to stop further bombing.
The suspect had earlier bombed two different locations in the Netherlands with letter bombs which caused damage to the buildings but did not cause any casualties. After which he requested to be paid an undisclosed amount in Bitcoin in order to stop more bombings.
