Crypto expert Antônio Vinicius Gritzbach has been killed at the Brazil airport. According to BBC reports, Gritzbach was killed at the São Paulo’s Guarulhos Airport.
Allegedly, Gritzbach , who was a businessman, had connections to one of the nation’s most potent criminal organizations was shot and killed.
The killing comes as one of the many thefts and kidnapping incidents that have this week, mainly against crypto personals.
Crypto Expert Dies In a Shootout
In a recent plea agreement with local prosecutors, Antônio Vinicius Gritzbach agreed to divulge information regarding Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), also known as First Capital Command.
The gang had then threatened to kill him. Security footage captured the moment two hooded men with submachine guns got out of a car and started shooting outside the airport terminal.
Gritzbach, a former PCC member, was shot multiple times and died at the scene after dropping his bag and attempting to flee.
Gritzbach, a cryptocurrency specialist, was in the process of explaining to authorities how he assisted the organization in laundering millions of dollars.
BBC in its report also highlights that Gritzbach had agreed to assist investigators in finding other members and turning over documents as part of his plea agreement.
According to reports, Gritzbach was offered a judicial pardon and a reduction in his money laundering sentence by São Paulo prosecutors in exchange.
Attacks On Crypto Experts See Rise In the Past Week
The killing of Antônio Vinicius Gritzbach is one of the many incidents that have happened against the crypto community this week.
Haichao Zhu, a co-founder of Rooch Network, was the victim of a robbery in the capital of Thailand recently. Zhu’s X post claims that after arriving in Bangkok on a late-night flight for the Ethereum Devcon conference, he was robbed at knifepoint.
Additionally, in Canada, the CEO of the Toronto-based cryptocurrency company WonderFi was kidnapped and held hostage for $1 million.
The CEO of Toronto-based cryptocurrency company WonderFi Technologies, Dean Skurka, was kidnapped in downtown Toronto. The incident occurred close to University Avenue and Richmond Street W during rush hour, shortly before 6 p.m. According to Toronto Police, suspects allegedly forced Skurka into a car and demanded a ransom of $1 million.
Skurka later assured CBC that he was unharmed and had made it back to his family without incident. Fortunately, the ransom was paid online, and he was later found in Etobicoke’s Centennial Park.