The woman, 22-year-old Valerie Rosario, is now in custody and faces charges of kidnapping and attempted murder, reported Syracuse.com.
According to the New York Post, Rosario allegedly invited the victim—a 24-year-old man whose name has not been released—to an apartment in the Bronx on February 7. Shortly after he arrived at 1 a.m., three men “barged into the apartment” and one started “pistol-whipping” the victim.
Rosario and the three men then stripped the victim, “placed him in a bathtub, poured flammable substances on him, and burned him with a flame,” said The Post.
At some point in the evening, after “multiple hours of torture,” the victim was purportedly moved to a second location, where he was “cut with a knife by one of the masked kidnappers as they demanded ransom” from his brother via a FaceTime call, The Post reported.
A court document alleged that the kidnappers demanded $100,000.
Police eventually found the victim lying “unconscious” in the back of a van in Queens. With him, police also found Javier Vargas, one of the alleged kidnappers.
The victim was taken to a nearby hospital where he was treated for multiple burns and stab wounds. Meanwhile, Rosario, Vargas and another alleged kidnapper were remanded into custody, said Syracuse.com. Their case is expected to be heard by a grand jury on Tuesday.
Sources told The Post that Rosario targeted the 24-year-old man because he “flashed” money on his Instagram account.
Reader’s Digest Canada recently encouraged social media users not to post photos of money, paychecks or credit cards to their profiles as it could lead to “getting mugged.”
In 2012, for example, an Australian family was robbed after their 17-year-old daughter posted a picture of a “large sum of cash” to her Facebook account, the BBC reported. No one was hurt, but the robbers did take some cash and a “small number of personal objects” before leaving the home.
When it comes to meeting up with an online connection, RAINN recommends that people not only meet in a public space but also tell friends where they’re going. Additionally, the organization says it’s best to arrange separate transportation.
“It’s important that you are in control of your own transportation to and from the date so that you can leave whenever you want and do not have to rely on your date in case you start feeling uncomfortable,” RAINN explained. “Even if the person you’re meeting volunteers to pick you up, avoid getting into a vehicle with someone you don’t know and trust, especially if it’s the first meeting.”
