Everywhere you turn these days, someone seems to be trying to bilk you out of your hard-earned money.
Among the most recent scams comes from Konrad Bicher, the self-proclaimed “Wolf of Airbnb.”
Bicher is accused of renting at least 18 apartments in Manhattan, New York, and offering them as short-term rentals without paying his own landlord’s rent, telling them he could not make payments because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bicher also received hundreds of thousands of dollars in Paycheck Protection Program funding based on multiple fraudulent applications.
“Bicher abused government programs and tenant protections intended to benefit New Yorkers in crisis, and he will have to answer for his conduct,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said.
Bicher was indicted in October on two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of aggravated identity theft, which carries an additional mandatory consecutive two-year sentence.
“As alleged, the defendant proudly executed his multiple schemes to defraud both private entities and the United States government for his own personal benefit,” FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Michael Driscoll said. “The FBI remains committed to not only exterminating fraud in all its forms but also to ensuring all those who abused a program designed to aid small businesses during an unprecedented global pandemic are held accountable.”
Then there’s the case of a tenant who was evicted from a condo in…
