Russian real estate investor in South Florida seeks political asylum

Sergey Danilochkin fled Russia in 2010, then spent $1.4M on homes and condos in South Florida

Sergey Danilochkin (Credit: Interpol)
Sergey Danilochkin (Credit: Interpol)

A Russian real estate investor who spent roughly $1.4 million on South Florida properties is seeking political asylum as he attempts to stay in the U.S.

Sergey Danilochkin moved to South Florida in 2010 after he was accused of participating in a $170 million tax fraud scheme in Russia. Danilochkin, who has claimed innocence, believes he could be killed if he’s forced to return to Russia, the Miami Herald reported. The fraud scheme was orchestrated by the same organized-crime group behind the Magnitsky affair. In a self-produced documentary, he says the crime group tried to lure his audit company into the scheme.

Between 2010 and 2012, Danilochkin bought at least 50 homes and condos that had been foreclosed on during the recession, in areas like Homestead, Overtown and Lauderhill, spending an additional $700,000 on renovations to the rundown properties.

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The Sunny Isles Beach resident is now in litigation with the sellers of those properties, most of which he has already sold, claiming that he was cheated out of renovations and management that the sellers were hired to handle. In the lawsuit, Danilochkin is alleging that Vadim Nestscheret, a Russian-born businessman, inflated prices, embezzled rent money, stole the title of some properties, and kept money intended for renovations. Nestscheret denied the allegations.

Danilochkin has moved on from real estate investment. As a YouTube reporter, he was recently found attending a private black-tie “Safari Night” fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago, hosted by President Trump’s sister. Danilochkin now stars in Russian America TV, a Russian-language YouTube news channel he founded, according to the Herald. [Miami Herald]Katherine Kallergis