Cryptocurrency CEO kidnapped for ransom in Toronto

Toronto police are investigating the kidnapping of the CEO of cryptocurrency company WonderFi Technologies Inc., who was allegedly abducted in Toronto on Wednesday evening and held for ransom.

Officers received a call about a kidnapping at University Avenue and Richmond Street in the downtown Toronto core shortly before 6 p.m., Toronto Police Service said in a statement.

The suspects, whose identities are unknown, forced Dean Skurka into a vehicle and demanded money. He was later found safe and uninjured in Centennial Park in Etobicoke, about a 23-kilometre drive west.

The police statement did not name Mr. Skurka, but a person with knowledge of the case confirmed to The Globe that the WonderFi president and chief executive officer was the kidnapping victim. The Globe agreed not to name the source because of the ongoing police investigation.

Mr. Skurka was first identified by the CBC, which reported that a $1-million ransom had been paid electronically.

WonderFi spokesperson Charlie Aikenhead said the company is co-operating with the police investigation.

“I can confirm there was an incident yesterday and that Dean is safe,” Mr. Aikenhead said in an e-mail.

“The safety and security of all of WonderFi’s employees are paramount. The company can confirm that client funds and data remain safe, and were not impacted by this incident,” he added.

WonderFi is backed by Kevin O’Leary, a prominent businessman and television personality known for his roles on Dragon’s Den and Shark Tank.

Mr. Skurka joined WonderFi in 2022 when it acquired his cryptocurrency trading platform Bitbuy Technologies Inc. He became WonderFi’s president and CEO several months later. The company calls itself Canada’s largest regulated crypto trading platform, with more than $1.28-billion in assets.

Kidnapping incidents involving cryptocurrencies are not uncommon, and have occurred in Toronto before.

Aiden Pleterski, an investor who referred to himself as the “Crypto King,” was allegedly kidnapped by four men in late 2022, tortured and driven around to various locations around the city, according to bankruptcy documents.

Mr. Pleterski, who has been charged with fraud, collected $41.5-million from investors for the purpose of investing in crypto funds, but only invested less than 2 per cent of that amount. Instead, he spent millions on his lavish personal lifestyle, buying exotic vehicles, renting private jets and taking elaborate vacations, according to documents filed in his bankruptcy case.

In 2019, 22-year-old Wanzhen Lu – a Chinese exchange student – was abducted from a condominium complex in Markham, Ont.. Police say he was approached from behind in an underground lot by three men who shocked him with a stun gun and forced him into the vehicle.

Mr. Lu was found three days later more than 150 kilometres away in Gravenhurst, Ont.

The captors, who had demanded payment in bitcoin, were subsequently arrested. The lead suspect was convicted and sentenced to a four-year prison term.

Anthony Di Iorio, an early ethereum investor, said in 2021 that he was exiting the crypto space partly due to concerns about his personal safety, according to Bloomberg. For years, Mr. Di Iorio, who made headlines in 2018 for purchasing a penthouse in the former Trump hotel in Toronto for $28-million, had a security team escort him on his travels.