The trial against a man who is said to have extorted several hundred thousand euros in the cryptocurrency Bitcoin from the drugstore chain dm has begun in Karlsruhe. At the start of the trial before the Karlsruhe Regional Court, the public prosecutor's office accused the 53-year-old of particularly serious extortion and causing an explosives explosion. The man is said to have threatened the nationwide company with further explosive devices if it did not pay.

According to the public prosecutor's office, he is said to have caused an explosion in a branch of the company in southern Baden in order to emphasize his demands. Significant damage was done in 2019.

Despite concealment measures, investigators were able to trace the digital trail of the extorted bitcoins with the help of a cryptocurrency expert. Thanks to further information, the 53-year-old German was finally identified as a suspect and arrested. Swiss investigators searched the house there last summer. Evidence such as explosive substances and firearms were seized. The man has been in custody since the end of July last year.

The jurisdiction of the Regional Court of Karlsruhe results from the headquarters of the blackmailed company. It is still unclear when a verdict will be reached.