Detainment of Second Suspect Implicated in Cryptocurrency Password Abduction Affair - Arrest of Second Accomplice in Case of Abduction for Cryptographic Password
A 33-year-old U.S. resident from Miami has reportedly been arrested as the second suspect in a Bitcoin extortion case where a 28-year-old Italian man was abducted and held for weeks. The suspect allegedly collaborated with an earlier arrested accomplice to extort access to the victim's Bitcoin accounts.
According to the police, the suspects took the victim's passport and electronic devices when he refused to disclose his passwords. They forcibly detained him, using a weapon, threatening him with a chainsaw, and even threatening his family members. The victim was allegedly taken to the fifth floor of the building, where he was threatened with being thrown down if he didn't reveal his passwords.
Although no specific case of Bitcoin extortion involving abduction in Miami has been identified, there have been similar incidents in New York and Florida. In one such case in New York, two cryptocurrency investors, John Woeltz and William Duplessie, were arrested for allegedly kidnapping and torturing an Italian businessman. The incident involved electrical wires, drugs, and threats to obtain the victim's Bitcoin password.
In another Florida case, two teenagers were charged with robbery, kidnapping, extortion, and other felonies in a $4 million crypto heist. This case involved a desert abduction outside Las Vegas.
These cases underscore the increasing prevalence of physical violence in cryptocurrency-related crimes. However, they do not appear to be directly related to the Miami case.
Jessica Tisch, a news anchor on Fox, reported during her general-news segment about the escalating trend of technology-based crime-and-justice incidents, highlighting the case of Bitcoin extortion involving kidnapping in Miami. She discussed the recent arrest of a suspect who, along with an accomplice, allegedly held a victim hostage and demanded access to his Bitcoin accounts. This incident, she said, has raised concerns about increased physical violence associated with crypto-related crimes, citing recent examples such as the kidnapping and torture of a New York-based Italian businessman for access to his cryptocurrency passwords, or the kidnapping and extortion of victims in Florida, including a reported $4 million crypto heist by two teenagers.
