Story by Ethan
On February 3nd, 2025, the arrest of Hayk Safaryan, age 43, was announced by Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. Hayk Safaryan was charged with second-degree Grand Larceny. The arrest and charges against Hayk Safaryan were a result of an investigation handled by Financial Investigator Jociely Antigua of the Asset Forfeiture and Crimes Against Revenue Bureau.
According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, Hayk Safaryan and a couple from Park Slope, New York first got into contact with each other in December 2021 to perform major renovations on a brownstone that the couple owns, the defendant being a licensed general contractor in Williamsburg, New York. On June 15th, 2022 both parties signed an itemized list for any demolition or construction work, the budget totalling to $1,290,000. Two days later on June 17th, 2022, the clients wired a payment of $322,523 to Hayk Safaryan’s bank account. Allegedly Hayk Safaryan also disbursed $4,000 to a separate company for site safety protocol, however the other $318,523 was spent on subjects unrelated to the construction project. Detectives allege that Hayk Safaryan, with the victim’s funds, spent $28,000 on a down payment for a 2018 Porsche Macan SUV, $17,750 for rent on his apartment, an unspecified amount given to cash advanced lenders to cover debts, an unspecified amount on designer goods (including Alexander McQueen and Prada), and an unspecified amount spent on an Airbnb rental in Riverhead, New York, hotels, bars, and restaurants. The following year on February 6th, 2023, Hayk Safaryan’s contractor’s license expired and was never attempted to be renewed. Allegedly in addition to not renewing his contractor’s license, Hayk Safaryan continued to ignore continuous demands from the victims attempting to get their money back. Allegedly Hayk Safaryan claimed multiple times that there was a lack of insurance or insurance related issues that stopped him from being able to pay back the victims, however the defendant would ultimately cut contact with the victims in the spring of 2023.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office stated that the charges against Hayk Safaryan are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
