Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan, a 28-year-old crypto investor from Italy, flew into New York on May 6 to meet his “business partners.” That meeting quickly turned into a nightmare. He was allegedly detained in the five-story Soho apartment for 17 days, during which he was tortured and abused in a bid to extract his crypto wallet seed phrase.
Police say Carturan was tied up with electrical cords, electrocuted, and even tased in the feet while they were submerged in water. He was allegedly forced to smoke crack cocaine, urinated on, and shown an electric chainsaw, which was used to threaten to cut off his limbs.
Investigators say a Polaroid photo was found showing Carturan tied to a chair with a gun pointed at his head. The entire ordeal reportedly unfolded in an apartment filled with expensive liquor, stripper poles, and loud music — described by NBC reporters as resembling a “high-end frat house.”
Carturan finally managed to escape on May 23. He told police that he tricked Woeltz into letting him retrieve his laptop, where the seed phrase was stored. As Woeltz turned his back, Carturan bolted, barefoot, toward a traffic officer outside.
While Woeltz is already in custody, the fate of his alleged accomplice remains unclear. Reports from different outlets conflict over whether the Swiss trader has already turned himself in or is still arranging to do so. Police have not released his name.
The investigation is still open, and more arrests could follow depending on what comes to light next. For now, the spotlight remains on Woeltz and the chilling claims that have stunned both the crypto world and the wider public.
Featured image from Discovery Institute, chart from TradingView
