An 18-year-old accused of bludgeoning his roommate to death in New York on Monday claims he was being held captive by the troubled lawyer, and had been tied up and forced to liquidate his stocks at gunpoint.

Bitcoin trader Quentin Capobianco told police that 29-year-old Jesse Smith - who authorities previously said had a heroin problem - ordered him to sell his assets to pay for some damages in the upmarket Astoria apartment they shared.

Capobianco said Smith had restrained him with zip ties and was threatening him with a shot gun.

However Capobianco managed to free himself and 'grabbed the hammer from the kitchen and hit Jessie three or four times until he was unconscious', he told the police, DNAinfo reported.

Held Captive: Quentin Capobianco, 18 (left), claims that roommate Jesse Smith, 29 (right), tied him up and threatened him with a shotgun for eight hours during a dispute about money

Scene: Police were called to this Astoria address about 3.30pm on Monday amid reports of a fight. When they arrived they found Smith with severe head trauma and arrested Capobianco

Dead: Smith (left) is seen here inside an Atlantic City hotel room in a photo from his Facebook page

Police were called to the apartment about 3.30pm Monday amid reports of a fight.

Smith was rushed to Emhurst General Hospital with severe head trauma but later died.

Capobianca was arrested at the scene

Police said they recovered a bloody hammer and a shot gun from the apartment.

Capobianco has been charged with second degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon with intent to use.

The Queens District Attorney's office believes Capobianco's account but still hopes to convict him of murder because he escaped his bindings and went to another room where he snatched a hammer and clobbered Smith, DNAinfo reported.

Capobianco listed on Linkedin that he worked with Smith.

Smith had recently left his job at The Povman Law Firm in Forrest Hills, where he handle personal injury claims.

The two are believed to have operated a currency exchange business using online currency Bitcoin.

However, according to The New York Post, they got into a money dispute over some damage that had been caused to their apartment by a wall-mounted fire place.

Priveleged: Smith grew up on Long Island an attended the University of Vermont and Hoffstra University School of Law

Charged: Capobianco is facing second-degree murder charges, however claims he was being held captive by Smith and hit him with a hammer 'three or four times' after breaking free

Neighbors told the newspaper that Capobianco had only been living in the apartment - in the luxury Exo building at 26-38 21st - for about five months.

Smith had lived alone in the apartment but had Capobianco move in to help with the rent.

A one-bedroom apartment in the building - which features a gym and rooftop deck - goes for around $2,800.

A clerk at a nearby liquor store told The Post that Smith would often come in to buy champagne to celebrate new clients

'He was starting a new business,' the clerk said.

'He said he was not going to work for someone else anymore, he was only going to work for himself.'

Beaten to death: Smith was pronounced dead at Elmhurst General Hospital on Monday

Smith's Facebook page features several photos of him partying, including a trip to Atlantic City.

His lawyer profile at Povman Law Firm - which was pulled down from the company website Tuesday - says that he grew up on Long Island and received a psychology degree from the University of Vermont.

He then attended Hoffstra University School of Law.

Smith worked at a 'prestigious criminal defense firm', his redacted profile said, before joining Povman, where he worked on personal injury claims, from 'complex medical malpractice cases to common car accidents or slip and falls'.

Struggling: Smith was a practicing lawyer but had a heroin problem, police sources said

Lifestyle: Smith's social media accounts show an active partying lifestyle. It is not clear if this photo, posted in August 2012, is of his living room

However it appears he had recently left to go into business with Capobianca.