Georgia Man Charged in Danbury Kidnapping and Crypto Extortion Plot

A man from Georgia named James Schwab got caught up in a scary plan to kidnap a couple from Danbury in August 2024. He‘s the seventh person charged in this mess, which was all about getting back at the couple’s son for something that happened in Miami. Schwab, who‘s 22 and from Peachtree Corners, was grabbed by police in January 2025. The story involves revenge, money, and a huge cryptocurrency theft worth $230 million, like something you’d see in a movie. Court papers from Bridgeport say it started with a fight.

On August 25, 2024, six guys from Florida got arrested for stealing a car and taking the Danbury couple from their home. Now, the feds say Schwab was a big part of it because he was mad at the couples son, called “V.C.” in the papers. V.C. was tied to that giant crypto theft, and the victim was a rich investor. The whole kidnapping was about getting ransom money to even the score.

As the police dug deeper, they found out Schwab wasn‘t just watching from the sidelines. He was talking to the kidnappers all the time and even paid for things like cars and places to stay. Phone records back this up—two phones tied to Schwab were texting and calling the Florida crew around the kidnapping day. Five of those six Florida guys have said they’re guilty and are waiting to find out their punishment, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

A fake Texas driver‘s license with James Schwab’s photo was found in a text between him and a Florida man charged in the August 2024 Danbury kidnapping.

The trouble started back in July 2024 when Schwab and V.C. got into a shouting match and a fight at a nightclub in Miami. Schwab wanted payback, so he teamed up with a guy named Adam Iza, who had a sketchy history with bad cops and ran a crypto thing called Zert. They came up with the kidnapping idea and got Angel Borrero, a tough guy who knew how to rob people, to do the dirty work. Court papers say Schwab picked Borrero because he was good at this kind of thing.

Schwab didn‘t have cash lying around, so he stole some. He broke into a woman’s American Airlines account and used 10,000 of her points to buy a plane ticket from Las Vegas to Miami in July 2024. He also took her info to get a Visa card, which he used to rent an Airbnb in Roxbury where the Florida guys planned to keep the couple. After Borrero got caught in August, he was recorded in jail saying “James” owed him money for bail, which points right back to Schwab.

This wasnt a one-man show. People who talked to the police said Schwab and Iza tried to get other groups to help, but some backed out, and Borrero only wanted his own crew. Iza got arrested in September 2024 for stuff like fraud and dodging taxes in California. When the FBI took his phone, they found flight details for a trip from St. Louis to New York on August 21, and one name matched the guy who rented a white 2018 Honda Civic used in the kidnapping.

Schwab doesn‘t have a long rap sheet, but he’s known for tricks like faking checks and messing with phone SIM cards to make money. He‘s never had a real job, just lived off scams, the court papers say. When they nabbed him on January 29 at the Los Angeles airport after a trip to Bali, he said he lived in Georgia, but folks think he’s really in L.A. and travels a lot. On February 25, a grand jury charged him with planning the kidnapping, and he said he didnt do it on March 12 in Bridgeport court.

This is serious stuff. If hes found guilty, Schwab could go to prison for life. His next court day is April 23, 2025, for a check-in. The Danbury kidnapping case shows a wild mix of crypto stealing, personal grudges, and mean plans to get money.

The police say Schwab was smart about it, using Iza‘s help and Borrero’s know-how. The money went from Schwab to Iza, then to Borrero to keep things moving. They wanted to scare V.C. into paying up because of his crypto cash, but the cops stopped it. This whole thing shows how cryptocurrency can lead to real trouble, not just online. For the Danbury couple, it was a bad dream because of their son‘s shady stuff. For Schwab, it’s a risky move that might keep him locked up forever.