Roman Novak, 38, and his wife Anna were last seen alive a month ago when they drove to meet who they thought were investors in Dubai’s mountain resort Hatta

The Russian Crypto millionaire and his wife were kidnapped and dismembered after being lured to meet ‘investors’ in UAE

Couple were driven to Hatta by their personal chauffeur who took them to a car park by a lake before they transferred to a different vehicle for the remainder of the journey

The high rolling Dubai-based couple, known for flaunting an affluent life of fast cars and private jets on social media, were ‘extorted’ for crypto-currency

Novak was under investigation at the time he disappeared over the alleged theft of more than $50million from crypto investors on the pretext of business development

Relatives in Russia reported the couple missing before the dismembered remains of the couple were found buried in a desert in the UAE 

Three suspects – two veterans of Russia’s war in Ukraine, and one former murder squad detective have been detained in Russia‘s Krasnoda region on their return from Dubai

The trio of former homicide investigator Konstantin Shakht, 53, war veterans Yury Sharypov, 46, and Vladimir Dalekin, 45, according to Russian police killed and dismembered Roman and Anna Novak

Five other Russians, all under 25, are believed to be linked to the extortion and murder plot

Dubai-based couple, Roman Novak and his wife Anna, [photo], who boasted of an affluent life of fast cars and private jets on social media – were ‘extorted’ for crypto-currency, were kidnapped and dismembered after being lured to meet ‘investors’ in the United Arab Emirates

A Russian crypto millionaire and his wife were kidnapped and dismembered after being lured to meet ‘investors’ in the United Arab Emirates.
Roman Novak, 38, and his wife Anna were last seen alive a month ago when they drove to meet who they thought were investors in Dubai’s mountain resort Hatta.
The high rolling Dubai-based couple, known for flaunting an affluent life of fast cars and private jets on social media, were ‘extorted’ for crypto-currency, according to investigators.
Just before disappearing Novak had obtained a highly collectable elite British AC Cobra car.

Fintopio founder Roman Novak and his wife and Anna, were last seen alive in October when they drove to meet who they thought were investors at mountain resort Hatta, in Dubai. Their dismembered remains were found buried in a desert in the UAE 

It is believed that the couple were driven to Hatta by their personal driver who took them to a car park by a lake before they transferred to a different vehicle for the remainder of the journey. 
That was the point when Novak sent a message to contacts in his phone stating that he was ‘stuck in the mountains on the Oman border’ and desperately needed $200,240. 
‘Subsequently, contact with the young couple was lost,’ according to the Russian Investigative Committee.
Their phones were then tracked for two days in Hatta, and next in Oman, before bouncing to the South African city of Cape Town, where the signals vanished in early October.
It is now believed the killers arranged for the victims’ phones to be turned on at these disparate locations in order to confuse investigators.

Traces of Anna Novak’s blood was at the villa. There was also blood in the rented car, a cache of knives near the crime scene, and one of the suspect’s T-shirts, apparently left behind in haste

The alarm was raised by the couple’s relatives in Russia before the dismembered remains of Novak and his wife were found buried in a desert in the UAE. 
Two fighters from Putin’s war in Ukraine and an ex-murder squad detective are now said to be behind the killing and dismembering of a Russian couple. 
Three Russian suspects were shown being detained in St Petersburg, and the Stavropol and Krasnodar regions of Russia ‘after returning from Dubai’.
They were identified as Russian citizens Konstantin Shakht, 53, a former homicide investigator turned drugs smuggler, along with Yury Sharypov, 46, and Vladimir Dalekin, 45, who both fought for Russia in the war before being discharged.
Allegedly they were the ‘investors’, who after abducting the couple, demanded the password to Novak’s crypto wallet.
‘Novak didn’t resist – but there was no cryptocurrency left. The wallet was empty,’ according to reports from Russian media.
The pair failed to raise a ransom from elsewhere. ‘Roman and Anna were killed and then dismembered.
‘Emirati police found traces of Anna Novak’s blood at the villa, blood in the rented car, a cache of knives near the crime scene, and one of the organizers’ T-shirts left behind in haste,’ according to the report.

Russian police arrested three suspects – Konstantin Shakht, Yury Sharypov, and Vladimir Dalekin, in the murder and dismembering of crypto multi-millionaire Roman and Anna Novak

The three alleged conspirators were remanded in custody until December 28. Five other Russian nationals, all under 25, it is believed are linked to the extortion and murder plot.
Novak had boasted of wealthy contacts including the billionaire owner of the Telegram social media empire, Pavel Durov.
Roman Novak was a Russian entrepreneur and crypto investor who built his reputation through ambitious crypto ventures. Presenting himself as a tech visionary with alleged ties to Telegram founder Pavel Durov, Novak founded Fintopio, a platform that claimed to revolutionize cross-border cryptocurrency transfers.
His project attracted investors from Russia, China, and the Middle East, raising hundreds of millions in funding.
He was under investigation at the time he disappeared over the alleged theft of more than $50million from crypto investors on the pretext of business development.
Among the alleged victims reportedly, were businessmen from China and Middle Eastern countries.

Former homicide investigator Konstantin Shakht, [photo], has been detained suspected in the murder and dismembering of crypto multi-millionaire Roman Novak and his wife Anna

Novak had earlier served a prison sentence for embezzlement, according to Russian reports, ‘had a knack for presenting himself as someone operating on the same level as Pavel Durov and Arab sheikhs,’ said Komsomolskaya Pravda [KP] newspaper.
However, ‘In reality, he was simply a talented manipulator who managed to convince people to hand over hundreds of millions of dollars.’
For the scam, he ran a ‘fast and reliable crypto network’ with an app developed ‘by Ukrainian programmers’.
‘Recently, Russian law enforcement carried out inspections of crypto exchanges in Moscow City, searching for traces of his investments,’ said KP.
Meanwhile the late couple’s two children have been handed over to Anna’s parents.
The motive appears to be rooted in revenge and financial gain as Novak’s reputation as a fraudster made him a target for those he allegedly deceived into believing they were financing legitimate crypto operations.
At the fateful meeting When Novak refused (or was unable) to transfer the demanded funds, the meeting turned deadly, probably because despite being labeled a “crypto millionaire”, Novak’s wallets were likely drained, leaving nothing to ransom.