Documents filed to the court earlier this month claim that Aiden Pleterski, Canada’s self-proclaimed Crypto King, was kidnapped and brutalized while being held for ransom.
Pleterski, 23, is accused of operating an investment Ponzi scheme, and following the bankruptcy proceedings that started last August, victims have so far filed claims amounting to $25 million in the case.
Pleterski promised investors he would use their funds to invest in foreign exchange and crypto positions. However, he only invested $670,000 of the $41.2 million collected. That’s less than 3% of the total amount.
It is alleged that Pleterski spent over $15 million to sponsor his lavish lifestyle, like renting private jets and acquiring high-end vehicles, including three Lamborghinis, four Audis, a Ferrari, a BMW, a Land Rover, and three McLarren.
Last December, Toronto Police notified the bankruptcy case’s Trustee, Rob Stelzer, about Pleterski being kidnapped.
Pleterski’s Father Testifies
The documents that revealed the kidnapping incident included Pleterski’s father, Dragan Pleterski’s testimony. The father disclosed that unknown people took Pleterski, drove him around Southern Ontario, tortured him, and later allowed him to call specific individuals only.
Dragan said one of the people his son contacted was Sandeep Gupta, his landlord. He claimed that Pleterski requested Gupta for a $3 million loan to settle with his kidnappers.
Dragan also revealed that the unknown kidnappers eventually released Pleterski under the condition that he pays them within a specific period and was never supposed to contact authorities.
Pleterski’s father said his son’s troubles started in December 2021 after disclosing that he had lost significant investor funds due to cryptocurrencies reversing from their peak prices.
Dragan said Pleterski opened aggressive positions to recover the deficit, which only resulted in more losses, allegedly losing all the funds.
Bankruptcy Case Trustee Recovers Some Investor Funds, Seeks to Sell Pleterski’s Assets
Meanwhile, the Trustee revealed in a court filing that he had recovered roughly $431,000 from Pleterski’s bank accounts. But that’s only 1.6% of the funds invested. Stelzer said he was looking to sell various vehicles registered under Pleterski’s name, among other assets, in an effort to raise more funds.
