Developers Bribing DOB Inspectors? Never!

June 29, 2006 -- Investigators arrested three Brooklyn men yesterday and charged them with trying to bribe a city building inspector. The arrests of the men, David Safir, Gennadiy Bronsteyn and Arkadi Shapiro, came after Mr. Safir offered a building inspector $3,000 to revoke a stop-work order on construction at a Brooklyn property he owned, said Rose Gill Hearn, the city's investigation commissioner. The Department of Investigation, which worked on the case with the Department of Buildings, said Mr. Safir then referred the inspector to Mr. Bronsteyn and Mr. Shapiro. The two men later offered the inspector $10,000 to erase citations for violations on a pair of adjoining properties they owned, investigators said.
3 Charged With Bribing Inspector [NY Times]

Comments

at least these guys were going thru right channels and trying their best to get stoporder removed.
most of the others just ignore and keep working. penalty for ignoring is peanuts compared to hiring a lawyer to
fight bribe charge.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 29, 2006 10:15 AM

Come on guys, everyone knows that the starting price is $20k, which is why you only offer bribes on the most important projects. An offer of 3k - 10k is really just an insult, thus the arrrest. :P

Posted by: Shahn Andersen at June 29, 2006 10:37 AM

How much would it have cost these bozos to comply with the order?

Posted by: Shahn Andersen at June 29, 2006 10:38 AM

In case the have zoning issues they can now go to the BSA and file under hardship.

I am sure the BSA are sympethatic...

Posted by: Anonymous at June 29, 2006 10:45 AM

I hope they throw these guys in jail for a few years, but I don't blame them for trying. the buildings dept is so difficult to deal with people just get frustrated. its really the guys taking the bribes that should be caught

Posted by: anon at June 29, 2006 10:47 AM

Throw these three and the DOB in jail. All parties are at fault. I agree though, $3K is kinda an insult in this market at this day & age ;)

Posted by: on the DL at June 29, 2006 10:56 AM

The DOB is a bureaucracy. They are always overworked and underpaid. However, they will deal with you fairly if you comply with their way of doing things. Hiring an experienced architect or expediter will speed things up a lot. These old-time people have been hanging out at the DOB for so long, that they know these DOB people on a personal basis. They won't take bribes, but they will tell you what documents to provide, who to talk to, who is really responsible for your matter. If you only reply to DOB notices, you will wait for months to get anything done.

Posted by: djr at June 29, 2006 11:03 AM

i've heard stories of people getting away with $500 bribes before.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 29, 2006 11:41 AM

A stripper would take a $500 bribe, but not a city official. They cost more.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 29, 2006 12:11 PM

"I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!"

Claude Raines in "Casablanca"

Posted by: Bob Marvin at June 29, 2006 12:31 PM

Sounds like Safir thinks he's Tony Soprano. Oops.

Posted by: JN at June 29, 2006 1:52 PM

Harumph, five years ago, 3K was more than enough on a private home project. These kids today, what a sense of entitlement!

Posted by: NoWayImTelling at July 1, 2006 6:12 PM