Site of East Village gas explosion sells for $9.15M
In March 2015, an explosion caused by an illegal tap into the gas main destroyed three buildings and killed two people in the East Village. Last month, Maria Hrynenko, the owner of the wrecked properties at 119 and 121 Second Avenue, sold two of the lots to Yaniv Shaky Cohen’s Nexus Building Development Group Inc. for $9.15 million, according to the New York Post. The third site destroyed by the explosion at 123 Second Avenue sold last year to Ezra Wibowo for $6 million, about $4 million less than the asking price.
The explosion was allegedly the result of an illegal plan to tap a legal gas line serving the ground floor restaurant in order to provide gas service to the apartments above it. Hrynenko is currently facing charges of manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, assault, and reckless endangerment, on top of about nearly two dozen lawsuits.
The gas explosion killed Moises Lucon, 26, and Nicholas Figueroa, 24, at the sushi restaurant at 121 Second Avenue. More than 12 others were injured. The lawyers of the victims told the Post in March that they are worried that the sale of the property may jeopardize their settlements.
One lawyer, Marius Wesser, said: “Let’s say she sells the property and takes the cash and stashes it away in the Canary Islands. There’s no way for us to recoup that.”
[Via NY Post]
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