He wanted his money back.
king's ransom
On Monday, the Toronto Police Service Announced who had arrested and charged four men in the December kidnapping of Aiden Pleterski, a 24-year-old self-described โKing of Cryptocurrencyโ who ran a cryptocurrency investment business that quickly went bankrupt.
The suspects face dozens of other related charges, including firing a firearm, kidnapping for ransom, aggravated assault and extortion.
According to court records, one of the suspects lured Pleterski into a vehicle and was held at gunpoint by two others once inside.
Over the next three days, Pleterski was allegedly beaten and tortured by his captors at various locations. When Platerski was finally left in the center, they threatened him to shut up.
Among the accused suspects was one of several dozen Pleterski investors, Akil Heywood, 39, who was chosen by other investors to investigate what happened to their money, and had himself invested $740,000.
exorbitant excess
Pleterski initially made his small fortune by investing in cryptocurrency as a teenager.
After incorporating his business in December 2021, the โKing of Cryptocurrenciesโ raised over $41 million from investors, a huge amount of money to entrust to a young man in his early twenties.
Court records show that Pleterski invested less than two percent of that money. A good chunk of the rest, nearly $16 million, he spent on what any suddenly rich kid would do: fancy cars and lavish vacations.
Or three McLarens, two Lambos, three Audis and two BMWs, The New York Times reports. Plus, private jet flights to boot.
apology under duress
in an edited video Received by CBC Torontoa visibly battered Pleterski apologized to investors for the massively squandered funds.
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry. I didn't want or intend to ruin anyone's life," Pleterski said in the video.
โWhen the crypto market started to crash in November 2021, I should have been honest with everyone,โ he added. โI lost close to $45 million strictly on the cryptocurrency market alone in a month.โ
While some of what Pleterski admitted was accurate, Pleterski's lawyer said, "his captors forced him to say a lot," as quoted by CBC.
However, by the end of the video, Pleterski seemed determined to make up for his excess.
"I'm going to work for it," he said. "I will live with the bare minimum until every last soul is paid for."
As of now, Heywood, along with another subject, has been released on bail.
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