NYPD Detective from Mayor Adams’ Security Detail Under Investigation in Cryptocurrency Kidnapping Case
A New York City police detective assigned to Mayor Eric Adams’ security team is under investigation for his alleged involvement in a disturbing cryptocurrency-related kidnapping and torture case. According to multiple law enforcement officials familiar with the matter, the detective is suspected of having unknowingly or otherwise delivered the victim into the hands of his abductors.
Authorities are still working to determine whether the detective had any prior knowledge of the kidnapping or if he was aware of the violent nature of the incident. That question remains central to the ongoing investigation.
The inquiry follows the arrest and charging of two men—John Woeltz and William Duplessie—in connection with the case. Prosecutors allege that the pair held a 28-year-old Italian cryptocurrency investor hostage for several weeks, using threats and physical abuse in a bid to obtain his Bitcoin credentials, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. The victim, whose name has not been released, ultimately managed to escape captivity.
Woeltz and Duplessie have both pleaded not guilty. Duplessie’s attorney declined to comment, and CNN has reached out to Woeltz’s legal representation.
Law enforcement sources said the NYPD detective involved in the case had picked up the victim at JFK Airport on May 6. At the time, he was working in an off-duty capacity, providing private security for Woeltz, a known crypto entrepreneur. The detective was later contacted by the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau and placed on “modified assignment”—a status that strips officers of their badge and firearm and reassigns them to desk duties while investigations are underway.
Officials say it remains unclear whether this officer had any awareness of or involvement in the alleged kidnapping plot.
The Detectives’ Endowment Association, the union representing the two officers, declined to comment on the situation.
An NYPD spokesperson confirmed Wednesday that both officers were reassigned as the investigation unfolds.
Prosecutors described the victim’s ordeal in harrowing detail, stating that he was held captive, beaten, and tortured over a period of days. At one point, a firearm was pointed at his head, and he was struck with it, according to the charges.
The suspects are also accused of binding the victim’s wrists and threatening to murder his family as part of the coercion scheme, prosecutors said.
The investigation remains ongoing as authorities work to determine the full scope of the alleged conspiracy and whether any members of law enforcement played a role, either knowingly or unwittingly, in the victim’s abduction.
Sources told CNN that both NYPD detectives under scrutiny in the ongoing cryptocurrency kidnapping case were reportedly working off-duty through a private security and investigation firm operated by a retired NYPD sergeant.
However, law enforcement officials said the department has no record of either detective submitting the required paperwork or receiving approval for off-duty employment—an official process mandated for NYPD personnel seeking outside work.
As the investigation continues, authorities are focusing on several critical questions, particularly whether either detective had any knowledge of, or involvement in, the series of assaults committed against the kidnapping victim.