A South Florida woman could face deportation after allegedly stealing over $850,000 worth of crypto from her ex-boyfriend.
Maissa Jebali, 22, is accused of taking the substantial sum of Donald Trump’s official Solana meme coin (TRUMP), from Anthony Bravo, a Miami man she had been dating for several months, according to a Miami Police Department affidavit.
Following a tense squabble on Bravo’s yacht, he discovered the alleged theft when he woke from a nap and checked his crypto accounts, the complaint said.
Bravo said that Jebali had accessed his phone and moved $850,000 worth of TrumpCoin from his Phantom wallet into her own.
“I loved this girl very much,” Bravo told NBC6, recounting their relationship, which had been nearing its end before the incident.
Bravo also claimed that, aside from the crypto, Jebali used his credit cards to rack up charges at an Airbnb and went on a $14,000 shopping spree.
After Bravo filed a report with Miami police through private investigator David Bolton, Jebali was arrested at the Yotel Miami on charges of grand theft and credit card fraud.
Following the arrest, Jebali denied any malicious intent, saying Bravo had permitted her to use his credit card and that she had already ended their relationship, according to the affidavit.
“I want restitution for what she stole,” Bravo told NBC6, adding that, “It’s not fair for what happened, I just need justice.”
Jebali is now in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and may face deportation to her native Tunisia.
While the theft has triggered a legal battle, Bravo remains hopeful that Miami-Dade state attorneys will be able to prosecute her.
Crypto theft around the world
If Jebali is found guilty, however, the crypto funds could remain out of Bravo’s reach.
As per a GitHub repository maintained by cypherpunk Jameson Lopp, 2024 saw 19 reported offline crypto robberies globally, a trend that has carried over into 2025.
These incidents, which range from scams to violent kidnappings, illustrate just how vulnerable crypto holders can be—especially as digital assets become more prevalent in criminal activities.
In December, a man posing as an Uber driver in Arizona was arrested for stealing $300,000 worth of crypto from unsuspecting passengers by tricking them into handing over their phones, which he used to drain their Coinbase accounts.
Six Chinese nationals were arrested in South Korea last month after robbing a crypto trader at a luxury hotel in Jeju.
The suspects were accused of staging a fake OTC crypto trade, luring the victim into a trap, then assaulting him and stealing $580,000 in crypto and cash.
Two weeks ago, a UK-based crypto broker was kidnapped in Spain, where his abductors forced him to access his crypto wallets for ransom.
He escaped during a police operation, leading to the arrest of three British suspects.
Edited by James Rubin
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