Crypto Torture Caper
Second Man Arrested For Alleged Kidnapping And Abuse
Published
The case of the crypto tycoon allegedly tortured in an NYC townhouse is heating up … because a second suspect just surrendered to the authorities for his purported role in the bizarre incident.
Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ … William Duplessie — a businessman from Switzerland — turned himself in Tuesday to the NYPD Major Crimes Unit.
Our sources say Duplessie is the second person arrested in connection with the alleged abduction and torture of Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan inside a SoHo townhouse over several weeks.
His alleged accomplice, John Woeltz, was busted Friday and charged with several felonies — assault, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment and criminal possession of a firearm.
TMZ obtained video showing Woeltz — barefoot and in a robe — being led by police out of the townhouse in handcuffs.
Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ … the three were partners in a Bitcoin venture that went awry, prompting Woeltz and Duplessie to allegedly attempt to hijack Carturan’s crypto password to access his account to steal his Bitcoin after luring him into their torture chamber.
For several weeks, Woeltz and Duplessie allegedly ordered Carturan to turn over the password, but Carturan refused, leading to his three-week nightmare beginning on May 6.
TMZ.com
According to a criminal complaint, Woeltz and Duplessie tortured Carturan using electric wires to shock him, pistol-whipping his head and repeatedly pointing the firearm at him. Police say the suspects also carried Carturan to the top of a staircase and hanged him over the side of a ledge, threatening to kill him if he didn’t turn over the password.
Still, Carturan never gave in and eventually escaped last Friday with only minor injuries, flagging down a traffic enforcement agent on the street.
By the way, a woman was also detained by police, but was not charged in the incident.
