Arik Kislin, real estate developer, “Hamptons-hopping businessman” and co-owner of the Hotel Gansevoort properties, allegedly helped lead a financial organization with close ties to the Russian mob, the New York Post reported, citing international court records. And this is not the first time Kislin has been linked to the mob.
The paper said that, according to court records and law enforcement officials, Kislin was acting as a treasurer to Trenton Business, a Liechtenstein-based company that served as a front for the Ismailovskaya organized crime group. The other two people involved in the operation were Anton Malevsky, who the Post called the mob group’s “godfather,” and Malevsky’s brother, Andrei.
“The war chest of the [mob] organization was the Trenton Business Corporation,” according to a German court ruling issued in a 2010 money laundering trial that the Post obtained. “Today, the gang is engaged in robberies, extortion shakedowns, drug and weapons dealing, as well as illegal prostitution and money laundering.”
According to Kislin’s website, he currently serves as the principal of Linx Industries, an investment company with stakes in “businesses ranging from aviation to financial services.” In the 1990s, Kislin helped develop Chelsea Market, which was then sold to Angelo Gordon & Co. Then this past summer, The Real Deal reported, Jamestown Properties purchased the market from Angelo Gordon & Co. In 2001, Kislin partnered with the Achenbaum family to develop the Gansevoort Hotel, starting with the Meatpacking district location. There are currently three Gansevoort locations: two in New York and one in Turks and Caicos. The hotel’s leading team is reportedly looking to expand its collection outside of America, with eyes set on Canada, Asia, South America and Europe.
Kislin has not been charged with any wrongdoing, the Post wrote. According to his lawyer, Lisa Cohen, Kislin has “no recollection” about Trenton. [Post]