A Florida man who referred to himself as the “Wolf of Airbnb” admitted to defrauding landlords by listing apartments illegally and taking advantage of a pandemic relief program.
Konrad Bicher, who was was arrested last June, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud on Monday in federal court in Manhattan. He had faced as long a term as 20 years in prison on the charge if convicted at trial, but prosecutors agreed to sentencing guidelines of 46 to 57 months.
They said Bicher leased Manhattan apartments that New York City had barred from being rented to third parties on a short-term basis or that couldn’t be sublet without the consent of the owner. Then, failing to pay the rent, he turned around and listed the units on marketplaces including Airbnb Inc., the US said.
All told, Bicher and associates failed to make more than $1 million in lease payments between July 2019 and April 2022 while listing the units for short-term rental, reaping at least $1.17 million in income, according to the government. He agreed to forfeit $1.74 million and to make restitution to victims in the amount of $1.99 million.
In news reports Bicher proclaimed himself the Wolf of Airbnb, an apparent play on “Wolf of Wall Street” Jordan Belfort, because he was “hungry and ruthless enough to get on top of the financial ladder,” prosecutors said.
His plea comes after a yearslong battle between Airbnb and the city over short-term rentals. New York this month agreed to delay until September enforcement of a new municipal law requiring hosts of short-term rentals to register for an operating license. Airbnb and three local hosts on June 1 sued to block the regulation, which had been set to go into effect next month, saying it amounts to an effective ban on short-term rentals in the city.
Read More: New York City Agrees to Delay Enforcing Law Targeting Airbnb
Bicher, 31, of Hialeah, Florida, was indicted in October for the scheme and also accused of obtaining more than a half-million dollars in government-guaranteed loans, by submitting falsified tax documents, through a US Small Business Administration program designed to provide relief to businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 24.
The case is US v. Bicher, 22-cr-589, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).