Crypto millionaire couple found dismembered in Dubai desert - Kidnapping suspected over financial fraud
Russian crypto entrepreneur Roman Novak and his wife, Anne, were found dismembered and buried in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve, following their disappearance in early October 2025. The investigation points to a kidnapping motivated by cryptocurrency funds, as Novak had a history of fraud allegations related to his digital currency transfer platform, Fintopio, which raised nearly $500 million from international investors.
A Russian millionaire couple, Roman Novak and his wife, Anne, were discovered dismembered and buried in the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve after being reported missing in early October 2025. The ongoing investigation suggests the incident was a kidnapping motivated by cryptocurrency funds, particularly given the man's controversial history, which included prior fraud convictions.
The couple, who resided in Dubai, disappeared following a trip to the Hatta area, located near the border with the Sultanate of Oman.
Final Message and Fraud Allegations
The last message sent by Roman Novak to his close contacts claimed he was stranded near the Oman border and in "desperate need of a large sum of money." Police in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) suspect that the message was actually sent by the kidnappers themselves as a distraction.
Roman Novak, an entrepreneur specializing in cryptocurrency, was a controversial figure. In 2020, he was convicted of large-scale fraud and sentenced to six years in prison before being released early. After settling in Dubai, he founded the Fintopio platform for international digital currency transfers. He successfully raised nearly $500 million from investors in Russia, China, and the Middle East, though investigators suspect that this platform, too, had generated new fraud concerns.
Suspects and Possible Motive
Russian authorities, in collaboration with their UAE counterparts, have arrested seven people in Russia, three of whom are suspected of committing the murders. The suspects include two soldiers who returned from the war in Ukraine and a former police officer who became a drug trafficker.
Investigators are operating on the theory that the kidnapping was aimed at recovering sums of money that the suspects had lost in Novak's Fintopio project. It is presumed that the suspects may have murdered the couple in their home after discovering that Roman Novak's "digital safe" was empty.
The couple's two children have been placed with relatives. An investigation for kidnapping and murder has been opened in Russia.
