SoHo Crypto Kidnapping: Inside the Torture of Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan

The Alleged Kidnapping and Torture

• 🚨 On May 23rd, a distressed Italian crypto millionaire, Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan, escaped from a Prince Street townhouse in Soho, New York.
• ⛓️ He alleged he was held prisoner, brutalized, and tortured for his cryptocurrency password in a "house of horrors."
• 📸 Police found Polaroid photos depicting Carturan tied up, tortured with a gun to his head, and a blood-soaked makeshift torture chamber with various implements.

Suspects and Charges

• 💰 John Waltz, a 37-year-old cryptocurrency investor from Kentucky, was arrested as the renter of the apartment.
• ⚖️ Waltz faces charges including first-degree kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, assault, and weapons possession, and has pleaded not guilty.
• 🤝 Prosecutors allege Waltz lured Carturan back to NYC with the promise of returning stolen Bitcoin, leading to a weekslong ordeal of torture.
• 🇨🇭 William Duplexi, a Swiss crypto businessman, later surrendered to authorities in connection with the plot.

Allegations of Corruption and Escape

• 👮 Two NYPD detectives were placed on modified duty due to alleged links to the case, including one believed to have driven Carturan from the airport.
• 💸 After nearly three weeks of torture, Carturan agreed to provide his Bitcoin password but escaped when Waltz left to get his laptop.
• ⚠️ Duplexi, who had prior legal trouble in Switzerland, was also held without bail alongside Waltz.