South Africa Kidnappers Demand Ransom in Bitcoin to Free Teenager

South Africa Kidnappers Demand Ransom in Bitcoin to Free Teenager
A Bitcoin (virtual currency) coin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. Reuters/Benoit Tessier/Illustration
|Updated:

JOHANNESBURG—A criminal gang in South Africa who kidnapped a teenage boy on Sunday are demanding a ransom in bitcoin crytocurrency of nearly $120,000, police said.

Katlego Marite, 13, was dragged into a car while playing with two friends near his home in Witbank, a town in the eastern province of Mpumalanga, on Sunday afternoon, police spokesman Leonard Hlathi said.