Crypto Investor Found Dismembered in a Suitcase

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Scary Find

Shortly after being reported missing, the dismembered remains of a crypto investor were found in a suitcase in Argentina — the latest example of crypto's persistent ties to serious and violent crime.

As the Argentine broadcaster C5N reported, children playing in a stream in a Buenos Aires suburb over the weekend found a suitcase that contained the cut-up legs and forearm of 41-year-old crypto advocate Fernando Pérez Algaba. A few days later, his head and torso were found nearby as well.

Nicknamed "Lettuce," Algaba became known for the crypto advice that he provided to his nearly 900,000 Instagram followers, though subsequent reporting has revealed the Spain-based influencer's investment company was in serious debt before he disappeared and was later found murdered.

As Argentina's Telam news agency reports, investigators have analyzed hundreds of messages and audio recordings that seem to indicate that Algaba was being threatened over debt. In one of the more chilling pieces of evidence, a speaker believed to be a local gangster is reportedly heard threatening to gouge out the influencer's eyes and cut off his hands.

Thus far, reports indicate only one arrest has been made, and it's not the local gangster but a woman who was said to have had a tumultuous relationship with Algaba.

Bad Company

While this is the latest murder in the crypto world, it's far from the first.

At the end of 2022, South Korean crypto executive Park Mo was also found murdered in similarly-sketchy circumstances: he'd reportedly been under investigation for embezzling funds from Bithumb, one of SK's largest crypto exchanges in which his company owned a majority share.

Earlier this year, CashApp founder Bob Lee — who was also the CPO of the crypto startup MobileCoin — was stabbed to death in San Francisco. Interestingly, his alleged murderer has been back in the news this week as prosecutors await new evidence against him.

There are, unfortunately, tons of other examples of crypto aficionados being found murdered or dead under mysterious circumstances— a jarring reminder that money tends to attract corruption and violence even when it takes place outside the confines of traditional finance.

More on crypto corruption: SBF's Lawyers Say It's Fine to Leak Your Ex-Girlfriend's Diary to the New York Times