SLO County teens hoped to steal $66 million in bitcoin in AZ home invasion, police say
The San Luis Obispo County high-schoolers accused of a botched home invasion in Arizona were allegedly after more than $60 million in cryptocurrency as part of an extortion scheme, according to court documents.
Jackson Sullivan, 17 of San Luis Obispo, and Skylar LaPaille, 16 of Morro Bay, were arrested on Saturday, Jan. 31, in Scottsdale after police said they posed as delivery drivers, forced entry into a home, restrained the residents using duct tape and then fled when police arrived.
On Thursday, more details about the wild crime came out in court documents obtained by The Tribune and first reported by Fox 10 Phoenix.
The documents revealed that LaPaille apparently told police in an interview following his arrest that the two boys had met recently and had been extorted over the Signal app by two subjects known as “Red” and “8” into traveling to Arizona to commit the alleged crimes.
The boys were believed to be in pursuit of about $66 million in cryptocurrency, the court documents said.
The Tribune is naming the the two high school students because Scottsdale Police previously said they are slated to be tried as adults.
San Luis Coastal school district assistant superintendent of educational services Lisa Yamashita confirmed to The Tribune that Sullivan is a student at San Luis Obispo High School, while LaPaille attends Pacific Beach High School.
They each face eight felonies, including second-degree burglary, possession of burglary tools, aggravated robbery, fraudulent schemes and artifices, two counts of aggravated assault and two counts of kidnapping, according to the documents. Sullivan faces an additional felony charge of unlawful flight from law enforcement.
Court documents reveal new details from scene of home invasion
The two teenagers allegedly posed as delivery service employees on Saturday morning to gain access to a home in the 9800 block of Windrose Drive in Scottsdale, a news release from the Scottsdale Police Department said.
According to court documents, one of the victims told police that two people arrived at the home with a box and a dolly, claiming to be delivery drivers.
When the victim answered the door, the two reportedly forced their way into the home, threw the male victim to the ground and then restrained him and a second victim with duct tape, the documents said.
One of the suspects then “demanded” that the male victim allow them to access his bitcoin, the documents said. When the male victim said he didn’t have bitcoin, the suspect allegedly forced his head into the ground.
When police arrived on scene in the middle of the incident, they said they observed a struggle occurring in the home and signs of forced entry. The two suspects allegedly fled the scene and were subsequently chased down and arrested by officers, police said.
Inside the house, officers found the two victims restrained with duct tape, while a third victim — the one who called 911 and did not make contact with the intruders — hid in the back of the home, documents said.
Police also observed duct tape, zip ties, a moving dolly and UPS-style clothing littering the home and backyard, along with a 3D-printed gun that was not loaded with ammunition, documents said. Police said that they did not know if the gun worked.
After leaving the scene, the two suspects allegedly fled in a blue vehicle with stolen license plates and drove into wrong-way traffic before pulling into a strip mall and hitting a dead end, the documents said.
There, police conducted a high-risk stop and removed the two teenagers, identified as Sullivan and LaPaille, from the car. The boys were arrested around 11:35 a.m.
Both were booked into the Durango Juvenile Detention Facility in Maricopa County, police said.
Both Sullivan and LaPaille were released on deposit bonds of $50,000 with ankle monitors, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Document says teens may have been extorted
According to the documents, LaPaille — referred to as the “co-defendant” — told police in an interview following his arrest that he first met Sullivan about a month ago and didn’t know his last name. Sullivan was named in the documents as the defendant.
LaPaille said that he was asked by Sullivan if he wanted to go to Scottsdale and tie people up to get $66 million in cryptocurrency, the documents said.
“The defendant got the information from someone known as ‘Red’ and someone known as ‘8,’ and all communications with those people were through the Signal application,” police reported in the documents.
The suspects knew the victim’s name and had been given $1,000 to buy supplies, the documents said. They reportedly left California on Friday and arrived in Scottsdale around 5 a.m. Saturday.
The boys allegedly stole a license plate off of a similar vehicle and bought supplies at Target and Home Depot. One suspect had previously purchased FedEx-style uniforms, and they had brought a “trac phone” to use to take the cryptocurrency, the documents said.
In his interview, Lapaille denied assaulting the victims and didn’t mention a gun, the documents said.
Suspect’s parent allegedly reported texts to SLO County police
Back in SLO County, on the day of the home invasion, a parent of one of the teens found text messages on the boy’s phone that detailed the crime, the documents said. The parent reported it to local law enforcement.
The text messages included details about dressing up like delivery workers, committing a burglary and splitting the money, and included an address down the street from where the home invasion occurred, police said.
The SLO County agency called to report the potential burglary to Scottsdale Police, according to the documents, but the report wasn’t received until after the incident.
“This case reflects the outstanding teamwork, training, and decisive action of our officers,” said Scottsdale Police Chief Joe LeDuc. “They moved quickly, coordinated effectively, and brought a dangerous situation to a safe conclusion. Let this be clear. If you come to Scottsdale to commit violent crimes, our officers will find you and hold you accountable.”
This story was originally published February 5, 2026 at 6:18 PM.
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