What Is The Ontario Crypto King Case All About?
The curious case of the Ontario 'Crypto King' continues to evolve as Aiden Pleterski's kidnappers begin appearing in court in what looks to be a case of Ponzi scheme vigilante justice.
The Ontario crypto king kidnapping is a shocking case of alleged crime and fraud involving a self-described cryptocurrency investor named Aiden Pleterski. According to various news reports, Pleterski took in more than $40 million from investors who trusted him to invest their money in crypto and foreign exchange markets.
However, he allegedly invested only a fraction of it and spent millions on himself, buying luxury cars, private jets, vacations and a warehouse. In December 2022, Pleterski was allegedly kidnapped by some of his disgruntled investors who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars to him.
He was reportedly driven around Southern Ontario, beaten and tortured for three days, and asked to pay a ransom of $3 million. He was eventually released but told to come up with the money soon. His father and his landlord reported the kidnapping to the police and the bankruptcy trustee (Grant Thornton) who was overseeing his case.
The kidnapping was revealed in a trustee report from the bankruptcy proceedings against Pleterski, which also detailed his lavish spending and his failure to account for most of the investors’ money. The report also said that Pleterski received an edited video of himself apologizing to the investors while he was badly injured from the kidnapping. The video was also sent to some media outlets.
Multiple Arrests In The Ontario Crypto King Kidnapping Case
Five men have been arrested and charged in connection with the kidnapping, including one who invested and lost $740,000 to Pleterski. They are facing charges of kidnapping, forcible confinement, assault, conspiracy and extortion. Pleterski’s lawyer has said that his client was forced to say a lot of things by his kidnappers and that he is grateful for the police’s work in apprehending them.
Investor Akil Heywood (39) has been charged by Toronto police with Pleterski’s kidnapping. Heywood had allegedly invested $740,000 with Pleterski and is proclaiming his innocence. Three other men have also been charged in the case.
In a curious twist, Heywood was the head of a group of investors who had been voted to represent scammed investor’s interests, and in that role had been dealing with receivers Grant Thornton for months. According to court documents, Heywood also threatened Grant Thornton trustee Rob Stelzer – demanding to be paid $2 million in December last year. Heywood resigned his role after being arrested on July the 5th. He is currently out on bail of $10,000 as the case continues.
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