Posted on 11/16/2019 4:22:31 AM PST by csvset
A Manhattan jury Friday convicted all three defendants in the deadly 2015 gas explosion that killed two people and leveled three East Village buildings.
After two days of deliberations, the jury convicted landlord Maria Hrynenko, contractor Dilber Kukic and unlicensed plumber Athanasios “Jerry” Ioannidis of manslaughter, assault, reckless endangerment and other charges.
Relatives of the defendants and of the two victims were in the audience at Manhattan Supreme Court, and many broke into tears at the verdict.
The forewoman trembled and dabbed her eyes with a tissue as she announced “guilty” on each count.
Ana Lanza, the mother of 23-year-old Nicholas Figueroa, who perished in the blaze, said the jurors made the right decision.
“I don’t want to put anyone in jail but because they did something wrong and lives were lost, they have to pay,” she said. “They can’t get away with it.”
The three defendants illegally diverted gas from 119 Second Ave. to 121 Second Ave., between East Seventh Street and St. Marks Place — both buildings owned by Hrynenko, Manhattan prosecutors Randolph Clarke Jr. and Rachana Pathak argued.
Hrynenko wanted to rent out four newly renovated apartments before Con Ed signed off on the new meters, the prosecutors said.
The defendants used a series of pipes and valves hidden behind a locked door to supply the gas to 121 Second Ave., which housed the ground floor restaurant Sushi Park.
Escaping gas from the cheap, faulty hook-up ignited in a fireball that claimed the lives of Figueroa, 23, and Moises Lucon, 26.
More than 14 were injured, among them several firefighters, Kukic and the landlord’s son, Michael Hryenko Jr.
The explosion happened March 26, 2015, after Kukic shut off the gas before a scheduled Con Ed inspection related to the new meters.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Con-Ed and the political structure in NYC has some responsibility for being so slow, bureaucratic, and corrupt.
When I first glanced at this story, I thought “they even went after the plumber?” But now that I see that it was a clearly illegal hook-up, it’s only justice.
On the day of the explosion, they allegedly shut off the gas line to avoid catching inspectors’ attention, and opened gas valves in the basement of 121 in the hope of passing the inspection. After the visit, Michael Hrynenko and Kukic allegedly turned the illegal gas line back on—but they didn’t re-close the valves they’d opened. About 25 minutes after they turned the gas back on, a worker at Sushi Park smelled gas and notified the building owner, but it ignited and exploded very soon after.
The NY Post reported that while Hrynenko was awaiting trial for manslaughter she sold some of her families’ luxury real estate holdings for a total of $9.15M.
Property records show the buyer was Yaniv Cohen’s Nexus Building Development Co. on May 2.
Now lawyers for the victims who have civil suits filed against Hrynenko are concerned that she may be able to hide the money overseas to protect it from plaintiffs who win damages.
Read more at: https://www.bisnow.com/new-york/news/land/les-gas-explosion-properties-sold-75454?utm_source=CopyShare&utm_medium=Browser
Awful. Those poor families, RIP — and the restaurateur’s reputation.
I thought they used that explosion as a cover to take out an Epstein-type threat, or maybe I’m confusing it with similar plays.
Could all three of these defendants pronounce each others last names without repeated practice and multiple attempts?
I think some good happened here, but Im not sure.
Holy crap!
hubby does HVAC. you wouldn’t BELIEVE some of the cob jobs done by “professionals.”
East Village gas explosion trial starts; Defense focuses on Con Ed, missing valve
Hah. The landlord’s son passed away at the ripe age of 31. People were speculating that his death was faked and he’s living the good live in some tropical paradise.
What's that supposed to mean? My Grandfather and Grandmother both legally immigrated from the Ukraine and Poland in the early 1900s with "hard to pronounce names". Are you implying that people with difficult to pronounce names don't belong here or shouldn't own anything?
This aint the early 1900s. I doubt you could pronounce 4 of the 8 names my grandfather from Mexico had. That doesnt mean you arent going to be suspicious when 3 of them have conspired to make money more important than other peoples lives.
Blow your self righteousness out your ass.
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