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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
José Olivares

Crypto investor in New York charged in kidnapping and torture plot

John Woeltz Kidnapping Torture Crypto New York Police
Manhattan skyline
John Woeltz had been renting a home in SoHo for roughly $30,000 a month. Photograph: Panther Media GmbH/Alamy

A cryptocurrency investor was arraigned in Manhattan criminal court on Saturday morning and charged with kidnapping an Italian man and then beating and torturing him for several weeks, allegedly to extract cryptocurrency passwords.

The 37-year-old crypto investor, John Woeltz, was arrested on Friday after allegedly torturing the man in a swanky home in the upscale Manhattan neighborhood of SoHo. The victim reportedly escaped the five-story home on Friday and sought help from the police, who later arrested Woeltz.

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