Ex-LAPD Officer Convicted in $350K Crypto Theft and Kidnapping

A Los Angeles County jury found former LAPD officer Eric Halem guilty of kidnapping and robbery after a two-week trial, convicting him for a 2024 home invasion in which $350,000 worth of cryptocurrency was taken and a 17-year-old was seized. Prosecutors said Halem and three others posed as police executing a search warrant at an apartment rented by the teenager, who had earned a significant amount of crypto.

The teen, who testified under his first name, Daniel, told the court he surrendered a hard drive containing Bitcoin after the men threatened to kill him. The defendants reportedly wore vests identifying them as law enforcement and gained entry using an access code obtained from a conspirator who rented the unit.

Testimony described the assailants restraining the teen and his girlfriend with LAPD-issued handcuffs and threatening to shoot the victim if he did not hand over the hard drive.

United States, Los Angeles County

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