The kidnappers of Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen, the wife of a Norwegian millionaire, are demanding a ransom of $10 million in Monero.

One perception that cryptocurrency has to constantly fight is that it’s mainly used for illicit transactions. Such is not the case, but the mainstream media and pop culture (movies and TV) tend to push such a narrative. Monero (XMR) is a crypto that is often associated with cryptojacking, wherein hackers use malware to get other people’s computers to mine the coin. Now the privacy-focused coin is being demanded as a ransom payment in the kidnapping of a 68-year-old woman in Norway.

Wife of Millionaire Kidnapped

Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen is the wife of Tom Hagen, a Norwegian millionaire worth about $200 million. She disappeared on October 31st and hasn’t been seen since.

Police say that she was abducted and are asking for the three people seen in a surveillance tape on the day she went missing to come forward and help in offering any potential leads. The surveillance footage was taken outside of Hagen’s business office.

Monero Ransom Demand

A note was found in the couple’s home in Oslo. The note said that Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen would be killed if the police were notified. The abductors also demanded a ransom of 9 million euros (about $10.3 million) in the Monero cryptocurrency.

The police have asked the family not to pay the ransom. They feel that the kidnapping was done purely for financial reasons. Sadly, they still have no suspects in the case.

This is not the only current kidnapping associated with cryptocurrency. A 9-year-old girl in South Africa went missing after leaving her grandmother’s house to walk two houses down to her home back on December 16th. In that case, a letter was sent to an anti-crime group, demanding a ransom of roughly $9,000 in bitcoins. The family does not have the means to pay the ransom, and the girl is still missing.

Do you think the police will eventually be able to find Anne-Elisabeth Falkevik Hagen? Does this kidnapping hurt the public perception of Monero? Let us know in the comments below.

Images courtesy of Pixabay and Associated Press.