A 22-year-old woman has appeared in Manhattan’s criminal court on attempted murder charges after she allegedly kidnapped her Instagram date for 24 hours and demanded a $100,000 (£76,500) ransom from his family.
A spokesperson for the New York Police Department told The Independent on Tuesday that Valerie Rosario was arrested last month after a man was “assaulted” at her address in the Bronx.
Court documents seen by the New York Post say Ms Rosario, who appeared in court for her arraignment on Thursday, had met her victim on Instagram before they arranged to meet at her apartment on Marble Hill Avenue.
Shortly after his 1am arrival at her home, Ms Rosario and her accomplices began to torture him for “several hours” by taping his mouth, and they “placed him in a bathtub, poured flammable substances on him, and burned him with a flame”, according to the charging document.
He was also struck with a knife around his “legs, back and body,” and the suspect demanded a $100,000 ransom from his family for almost 24 hours, including a video call with his brother demanding payment.
Police say they later found the male victim in the back of a van in Queens along with an accomplice, 24-year-old Javier Vargas, who was sitting in the vehicle with a knife, the court documents were reported as saying.
The victim was meanwhile found “barely breathing” and “unconscious, wrapped in a blanket with tape covering his mouth”, District Attorney Andrew Kluger told the court.
Police told The Independent that “the victim received treatment at an area hospital in stable condition”, and that a third man, 24-year-old Michael Candelario, was also arrested on attempted murder, assault, robbery and kidnaping charges.
The Post reported that the court heard that the victim was targeted because they wanted to scam him for money after seeing his Instagram account, where he flashed his wealth.
Mr Rosasrio will appear again on Tuesday and her lawyer told the newspaper that she “denies all the allegations that have been leveled against her”. She has been held.
The Independent has approached the New York District Attorney’s office for comment.
