FBI Makes Hoarding and Price Gouging Bust In Boro Park

A Brooklyn man was arrested today for allegedly coughing on FBI agents while claiming to have the Coronavirus, and with lying to them about his accumulation and sale of surgical masks, medical gowns, and other medical supplies, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Baruch F, 43, was arrested by special agents of the FBI today and charged by complaint with assaulting a federal officer and with making false statements to law enforcement.

FBI Makes Hoarding and Price Gouging Bust In Boro Park

There have been many people taking advantage of the situation here in NY to turn a profit but one man ran an operation that had enough supplies to outfit an entire hospital. He was selling to medical staff that urgently need these things at a 700% mark up.

Related article:
thejewishvoice.com...

The Orthodox community is generating REALLY bad press lately in NYC and abroad. Their community leaders need to handle this or they will face greater scrutiny and review by justifiably distrustful neighbors. This pandemic is showing the ugly sides of many. The problem for them begins once the crisis settles down.

Added:

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On March 25, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services issued an executive order designating certain scarce health and medical resources necessary to respond to the spread of the Coronavirus.

Those designated materials included N95 filtering face-piece respirators, personal protection equipment (PPE) face masks, surgical masks, sterilization services, and disinfecting devices, among other things.

Mr. F allegedly sold certain designated materials, including N95 respirators, to doctors and nurses at inflated prices. In one instance, on March 18, 2020, a doctor in New Jersey contacted Mr. F via a WhatsApp chat group labeled “Virus2020!” Mr F agreed to sell to the doctor approximately 1,000 N95 masks and other assorted materials for $12,000, an approximately 700 percent markup from the normal price charged for those materials.

Mr. F directed the doctor to an auto repair shop in Irvington, New Jersey, to pick up the order. According to the doctor, the repair shop contained enough materials, including hand sanitizers, Clorox wipes, chemical cleaning supply agents, and surgical supplies, to outfit an entire hospital. Mr. F later told the doctor that he had been forced to move all of those supplies from Irvington to another location.

On March 23, 2020, Mr. F allegedly offered to sell a nurse a quantity of surgical gowns and directed the nurse to his residence in Brooklyn. Mr. F also received, on March 25, 2020, a shipment from Canada containing approximately eight pallets of medical facemasks.

So you’re telling me some random guy was more prepared than a damn hospital in the most populated city in the US and was arrested for it. Let me guess that city is also run by Democrats, color me surprised.

a reply to: Middleoftheroad

I dont think the problem was his preparedness. The issue was the price gauging targeting the under protected medical personnel here.

I dont speak about party affiliation now a days. Red and blue states are just as effed in this.

a reply to: HelloboysImbackguy

Well hospitals price gouge themselves. Seems the hospital got a dose of their own medicine.

Weird how they tell us that wearing a mask doesn't protect the wearer... but all the FBI agents had masks on while they we loading the stuff into the truck.

a reply to: butcherguy

Oh so they confiscated that mans property he had already purchased as well? I guess NY is full blown communist now.

a reply to: Middleoftheroad

Well, the problem is an efficiency and distribution problem. On one end, you have bean-counters and shareholders who want the most efficient distribution solution possible. This is the mythical "last-mile." On the other side, you have doctors, nurses, EMTs, techs, etc who need five gowns, five masks, five pairs of gloves, five pairs of booties and five shields to safely intubate one highly infectious patient.

Until now, efficient meant "base your (bi)weekly order on your busiest night over the last 18 weeks (rolling)." Of course, that doesn't work during a pandemic, so we quickly order MOAR from our suppliers.

Unfortunately, they were also stocking based on maximum efficiency and so were their suppliers. The manufacturers were likewise producing based on this max efficiency model.

Now demand has gone up 10,000-percent, and the manufacturers can't meet that demand with product in real-time, so the demand drives up the value of the supply until you have this.

Well, not this. This is just one jackass with a little bit of foresight, a couple of connections and a thoroughly depraved heart. But it's exactly the same with the official supply chain, as well.

originally posted by: Middleoftheroad
a reply to: butcherguy

Oh so they confiscated that mans property he had already purchased as well? I guess NY is full blown communist now.

Yes, there are videos of the FBI agents loading it into a truck. All wearing masks or respirators and gloves.

Well, his own fault. Maybe sell it at 10%, instead of 700%? It's not like we weren't warned they were coming after the people doing this.

Jackwad.

originally posted by: Middleoftheroad
a reply to: butcherguy

Oh so they confiscated that mans property he had already purchased as well? I guess NY is full blown communist now.

NY NJ CA and some other states are no longer considered part of the United States.

I dont agree with this crackdown on the free market.

How is this different from owning any other commodity which the buyer hopes will increase in price.

Because people "need" it?

So called preppers have been stocking up on everything from guns and ammo to soap and canned food for years.

And now theyre being punished for it...

originally posted by: Middleoftheroad
a reply to: butcherguy

Oh so they confiscated that mans property he had already purchased as well? I guess NY is full blown communist now.

At 25k per violation yes they took it all

consumer.findlaw.com...

Guess you can add thease other 34 states as communists

originally posted by: butcherguy
Weird how they tell us that wearing a mask doesn't protect the wearer... but all the FBI agents had masks on while they we loading the stuff into the truck.

Exactly.
The CDC is just now beginning to figure out they screwed up royally.

originally posted by: Middleoftheroad
So you’re telling me some random guy was more prepared than a damn hospital in the most populated city in the US and was arrested for it. Let me guess that city is also run by Democrats, color me surprised.

Profiteering and price gouging is a democratic thing? Since when?

originally posted by: HelloboysImbackguy
a reply to: Middleoftheroad

I dont think the problem was his preparedness. The issue was the price gauging targeting the under protected medical personnel here.

I dont speak about party affiliation now a days. Red and blue states are just as effed in this.

Was he forcing people to buy his property?

a reply to: panoz77

We aren't talking car parts. He has strategic resources that are in short supply. Move to the mountains. He is relying on the citys support and resources while targeting at risk critical personnel.

We have regulations for prices even during normal activity. During a national crisis they save lives first and leave you to deal with the anger over it afterwards.

They COULD have refused to protect his stockpiles with public servants and just let the general population have at it raiding him.

He wouldn't survive it.

Added:
Thats a come up worth the risk. I would be the first to cut a hole in his roof and climb down like the grinch

Unless they have the guy on video sneezing and coughing intentionally on an agent it sounds pretty sketchy.

a reply to: jjkenobi

Yeah I dont believe federal or local law enforcement when they simply SAY people resisted arrest or assaulted officers....but the FBI carries body cameras for investigating field work. Put it in a button or a hat, or a jacket pin. Or just a regular body cam really. They probably have evidence if they filed formal charges in federal court. Who knows.

Still I have no sympathy for the man. Be right first and then worry about people supporting you. I do not support what he did. He should have been the savior of his community and their neighbors. Instead he took advantage of their misfortune to turn a profit.

Thats a sin.

So.. they think no way will we pay that.
lets just Steal it! send in the FBI.
so much for Free trade.

realy think about this.
thay have stolen his propety.
and will now not pay him.
all beacuse they would not pay the price.

a reply to: buddha

He could have followed the rules and sold them within the regulated price range.

He chose to be slick and slipped. No sympathy