NEW YORK (PIX11) — A 28-year-old Italian man was held captive for three weeks in a Manhattan apartment over access to his multi-million-dollar cryptocurrency wallet.
The victim managed to escape from the Prince Street apartment early Thursday, after alerting an on-duty NYPD Traffic Agent, who called police.
According to police sources, all of the parties are involved in the crypto trading world. The man was taken captive after arriving at the apartment from Italy on May 6.
Over the next several weeks, police say the victim was tied to a chair with electrical cords, cut, tortured, and subjected to multiple forms of abuse. It also included an alleged extortion plot with the victim having a gun held to his head while suspects photographed him.
He was also electrocuted with a taser while his feet were submerged in a bucket of water, police sources said.
After escaping on Thursday morning, the victim was treated and released from a local hospital.
Police responding to the scene entered the unlocked apartment and found ammunition, a firearm, cash, and broken furniture inside.
John Woeltz, 37, was found inside the residence wearing a bathrobe and was arrested.
Woeltz is charged with assault, kidnapping, and unlawful imprisonment.
One additional suspect remains at large, and a woman is in custody with charges pending.
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