New York Prosecutors Arrest Bitcoin Investor in His 30s
Forced Drugging and Attempted Murder by Hanging Over Stairs
An incident in which a cryptocurrency investor in his 30s in the United States imprisoned a foreign man in a luxury apartment in Manhattan, New York, for more than two weeks and tortured him to reveal the password to his Bitcoin electronic wallet has shocked the public. On the 25th (local time), Yonhap News reported, citing the Associated Press, that a kidnapping crime related to cryptocurrency occurred in New York.
A cryptocurrency investor in his 30s in the United States shocked the public by imprisoning a foreign man in a luxury apartment in Manhattan, New York, for more than two weeks and torturing him to reveal the password to his Bitcoin electronic wallet. Asia Economy
According to an announcement by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office in New York on the same day, cryptocurrency investor John Waltz, age 37, was arrested and detained on charges including kidnapping, assault, illegal confinement, and illegal possession of a firearm. Waltz is accused of kidnapping a 28-year-old Italian national, referred to as Mr. A, on the 6th, confining him in a luxury apartment in Manhattan, and demanding the password to his Bitcoin wallet while subjecting him to assault and torture.
It was found that Waltz, along with accomplices currently being tracked by investigators, tied up victim A, administered drugs, struck him on the head with a firearm, and even used electric shock torture to force him to reveal the password to his Bitcoin electronic wallet. The group also threatened to harm A's family and, at one point, hung A over a stair railing while making threats to kill him.
On the 23rd, feeling his life was in danger, A told his captors, "I will give you the password," and claimed that the password was saved on his laptop in another room. While Waltz let his guard down and turned away to retrieve the laptop, A managed to escape from the apartment, barely saving his life. After making it outside, he approached a nearby traffic police officer for help and was rescued.
A is currently receiving treatment at a hospital, and prosecutors stated that his account of the abuse is consistent with his physical injuries. New York City investigators searched the apartment where A was confined and seized drugs, a saw, barbed wire, a bulletproof vest, night vision goggles, and ammunition. At the scene, a Polaroid photo was also found showing a gun pointed at A's head. According to the Associated Press, it is not yet known whether Waltz and A were previously acquainted.
Meanwhile, there has been a string of kidnapping incidents targeting cryptocurrency moguls recently. On the 13th, in France, four masked assailants attempted to kidnap the daughter of the CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange Paymium, but were thwarted thanks to help from citizens. On the 1st, the father of a cryptocurrency entrepreneur was kidnapped in Paris's 14th arrondissement and suffered the loss of a finger. In January, David Balland, co-founder of the cryptocurrency company Ledger, was kidnapped along with his wife at their home and held for a ransom of 10 million euros (about 15.7 billion won) before being rescued by police.
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