The whereabouts of Bulgarian entrepreneur and crypto trader Alexander Altunbashev have been unknown since Monday. Law enforcement is currently investigating the possibility that he has been kidnapped, and the local crypto community speculates that he may be hiding from disgruntled investors.
Bulgarian authorities are investigating the possible kidnapping of an alleged crypto millionaire
Bulgarian police are trying to track down a businessman who went missing under strange circumstances earlier this week, 32-year-old Alexander Altunbashev, an IT expert and entrepreneur who, according to media reports, made his money from crypto trading.
Sofia prosecutors are looking into the possibility of his kidnapping as the main suspected reason for his disappearance. Nova TV, citing investigative sources, reported that Alexander’s sister Teodora spoke with him before he left for Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second largest city.
On Monday morning, Teodora drove him to Sofia’s Mladosto district. Later that day, she saw a man unlocking and entering her brother’s house, which is right next to her apartment. When she asked him who he was and what he was doing, he simply said he was in a hurry, got into an SUV driven by a woman, and left.
Investigators found Alexander’s apartment upside down. They believe that whoever did it was probably trying to access his bank account or cryptocurrency wallet; when Teodora last contacted him by phone, Alexander said he was traveling toward Burgas, on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast.
Alexander’s atypical behavior and her attempts to turn off his phone and speak again convinced Teodora to call the police. Investigators also questioned the crypto trader’s girlfriend, Kristina. She was unaware of any threats against him or problems in his business relationships.
Altunbashev may be hiding from clients and the crypto community suspects
The missing IT professional’s cell phone was last used at a location outside Sofia. He was last spoken to by Alexander’s close friend Ivaylo Borisov, a criminal with a criminal record known under the alias “Torino” The two were supposed to meet at noon on Monday, but the crypto trader never showed up. Borisov is cooperating with law enforcement authorities.
Meanwhile, speculation has surfaced in the country’s crypto community that Alexander Altunbashev may have actually decided to go into hiding because he had invested funds for a client that could possibly have been lost.” If he was actually managing money for others, he wakes up one morning and the money is zero – maybe there is a conflict with people looking for their money,” Bithope Foundation director Vladislav Dramaliev was quoted by bTV He commented.
The incident follows the recent crypto market downturn that led to the collapse of crypto projects, with major coins such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) losing half their value from last year’s all-time highs. According to unconfirmed reports by other Bulgarian publications, Altunbashev is said to have earned more than €6 million (almost $6.5 million) in 2021 and bragged to friends about expensive real estate purchases in Greece and Dubai. His. Facebook profilereveals that he has also visited other exotic destinations.
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