Early Bitcoin investor John Woeltz arrested for kidnapping and extorting Italian tourists

According to BlockBeats, on May 25th, New York police arrested 37 year old cryptocurrency investor John Woeltz and a 24-year-old female accomplice in downtown Manhattan on suspicion of kidnapping and torturing an Italian tourist. According to sources cited by The New York Post, Woeltz imprisoned the victim in a high-end SoHo apartment for over two weeks, attempting to gain access to their financial account through violence, involving millions of dollars. The police found Polaroid photos documenting abuse at the scene, including a photo of the victim being held at gunpoint. The victim was lured to an apartment on May 6th due to a so-called commercial transaction, and was subsequently kidnapped and abused. When he escaped, he claimed that Woeltz planned to kill him. Woeltz was involved in early investments in Bitcoin, but its GitHub account has not been active since 2020. Woeltz is charged with second degree assault, kidnapping, illegal imprisonment, and illegal possession of firearms, while the female accomplice is charged with kidnapping and illegal imprisonment. (TheBlock)