Two Tennessee men face San Francisco court in $6.5 million crypto robbery spree

A federal grand jury indicted Elijah Armstrong, 21, Nino Chindavanh, 21, and Jayden Rucker, 25, on March 31, 2026, charging them with conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, attempted Hobbs Act robbery and attempted kidnapping. The Justice Department says the men traveled nearly 2,000 miles from Tennessee to carry out the alleged crimes, then used the cover of ordinary front-door contact to get inside victims’ homes.

According to prosecutors, the suspects posed as UPS, pizza delivery and DoorDash drivers in order to gain access. Once inside, they allegedly escalated to violence, using firearms, duct tape and zip ties. In one incident, a victim was allegedly forced at gunpoint to sign into crypto accounts so about $6.5 million could be transferred out. In another, a victim was struck in the head with a firearm after not complying.

The case underscores how a new class of wealth has created an old kind of fear in the Bay Area: the possibility that someone waiting at the door is not a delivery worker at all, but the start of an assault. ABC7 and CBS San Francisco reported that the men face multiple charges, including attempted kidnapping, and that the case involves four victims in all. That pattern, from forced account access to restraint and kidnapping allegations, has made the case resonate beyond the courthouse and into neighborhoods where tech money and residential vulnerability often overlap.