In the early morning of January 21, David Balland and his wife were forced at gunpoint into separate vehicles outside their home in Méreau, a commune in the opulent Loire Valley, France. The kidnappers had targeted Balland, who cofounded cryptocurrency wallet company Ledger, with the goal of winning a ransom, a prosecutor has claimed.

The kidnappers communicated their demands—the specifics of which have not been disclosed by law enforcement—to Éric Larchevêque, another Ledger cofounder. To flush out the full payment, they severed one of Balland’s fingers. French authorities dispatched more than 200 officers to investigate.

On January 22, officers rescued Balland from a property in the neighboring town of Châteauroux. They later discovered his wife—trussed up but otherwise unharmed—in the back of a beaten up van.