Crypto investor and alleged kidnapper appears in court awaiting grand jury indictment

Yahoo

3 days ago

A cryptocurrency investor and alleged kidnapper accused of torturing an Italian man in a posh Manhattan townhouse appeared in court Friday.
William Duplessie, 33, stood before a judge in Manhattan Criminal Court wearing a beige prison smock and his arms cuffed behind his back as he awaited a grand jury indictment.
Duplessie is accused of helping fellow crypto trader John Woeltz, 37, imprison and torture the 28-year-old victim for 17 days at a Prince St. townhouse near Mulberry St. in SoHo.
The alleged kidnappers shocked the victim with electric wires, held him upside down from the top of a staircase, cut his leg with a saw and threatened to kill his family in a bid to coerce their Italian hostage to unlock his Bitcoin account, prosecutors said.
The 28-year-old victim managed to escape the apartment on May 23 and flagged down a traffic agent, who contacted police, a second police source said.
Cops searched the Prince St. apartment that day, finding a firearm and Polaroid pictures of the bound victim enduring torture. Police led Woeltz out of the $30,000-a-month, eight-bedroom apartment wearing a white bathrobe and handcuffs.
Duplessie surrendered Tuesday to cops at the 13th Precinct stationhouse and was charged with assault, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment and possession of a firearm.
Both men are being held without bail.
The investigation into the alleged kidnapping scheme also ensnared two veteran NYPD detectives — including a member of Mayor Adams' security detail — who were placed on desk duty for allegedly providing security for one of the defendants without department approval, police sources said.
The cop on the mayor's detail, Detective 1st Grade Roberto Cordero, is believed to have picked up the kidnapping victim from a local airport on May 6, a source said.