2nd Suspect Indicted In NYC Crypto Torture Case, DA Says

NEW YORK CITY — A second suspect has been indicted after being charged with kidnapping an Italian man in a New York City townhouse that lasted close to three weeks.

William Duplessie, 33, was indicted on Friday and faces assault, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment and criminal possession of a firearm charges, prosecutors said.

Duplessie had surrendered to police on Tuesday, Patch previously reported. He has not entered a plea in the case yet.

Duplessie is allegedly the business partner of John Woeltz, who is accused of holding a 28-year-old man captive inside his townhouse while to trying to obtain the victim's Bitcoin password.

Woeltz has been indicted on similar charges.

On May 6, the victim was kidnapped and held inside the Prince Street townhouse. Woeltz and Duplessie allegedly took the victim's passport and phone, authorities said.

When the victim refused to give the men his Bitcoin password, they started to torture him. The captors allegedly pistol-whipped, had a gun held to his head, dangled him off the building and threatened his family.

After 17 days of torture, the victim managed to escape the townhouse on Friday and ran down Spring Street where he managed to get the attention of a traffic cop.

Woeltz is believed to be a crypto -currency trader from Kentucky with an estimated worth around $100 million, according to reports.

The victim, an Italian citizen, was apparently a business partner of Woeltz and Duplessie, according to officials.

Both suspects are due back at a Manhattan court on June 11.