Konrad Bicher, 32, was sentenced to more than four years in prison after pleading guilty to a long-running short-term rental fraud that netted him more than $1 million and an “Airbnb deal.” “Wolf” nickname.
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A Florida man who became the self-proclaimed “Wolf of Airbnb” by defrauding Manhattan landlords and taking advantage of eviction protections during the COVID-19 pandemic was sentenced this week to his next punishment: four years in prison.
Konrad Bicher, 32, was sentenced Monday. plead guilty Wire fraud last year. He was also ordered to pay nearly $4 million in restitution and damages.
Bicher stole more than $1.1 million through a scheme that included renting 18 apartments in New York City and then subletting them on Airbnb while failing to pay the landlords. He avoided eviction thanks to pandemic-era tenant protections.
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Prosecutors also said he stole more than $565,000 from government pandemic relief programs and failed to pay more than $1 million in rent to his landlord.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Beshear abused government programs and tenants designed to benefit people and businesses in need during one of the worst economic and public health crises in history. “He bragged about his scheme to friends and the media, proudly calling himself the ‘Wolf of Airbnb,’ but as today’s sentencing highlights, those involved in this callous and fraudulent conduct will Taking responsibility for one’s own crimes, regardless of their status – the title given.
Prosecutors said the scheme actually began before the pandemic, with Beecher renting apartments in Manhattan starting in February 2019.
The lease prohibits Buescher from subletting to third parties on a short-term basis.
He continues to rent out apartments on the short-term platform until the program ends in April 2022.
“While the scheme was being carried out, Beecher dubbed himself the ‘Wolf of Airbnb,’ explaining to the media that the nickname referred to his ‘hungry and ruthless qualities that would make him reach the top of the financial ladder.'” prosecutors wrote. The moniker refers to Jordan Belford, the notorious Wall Street trader whose story became the hit 2013 film by Martin Scorsese.
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