Vladimir Sklarov, a 63-year-old man with multiple aliases including Gregory Mitchell and Mark Simon Bentley, was arrested in Chicago for defrauding Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego out of $450 million. According to a newly unsealed U.S. indictment and other court records, Sklarov set up a sham company called Astor Asset Group that purportedly had ties to the famed New York Astor family.
Key Takeaways
Vladimir Sklarov, using aliases including Gregory Mitchell, was arrested for defrauding Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego out of $450 million through a fake loan scheme tied to the Astor family. Sklarov set up a sham company called Astor Asset Group and convinced Salinas that he could secure a $115 million loan using shares worth at least $450 million as collateral. The indictment alleges that Sklarov sold the shares, kept most of the money for himself, and falsely claimed Salinas had defaulted on the loan.
- Vladimir Sklarov arrested in Chicago for fraud involving Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego
- Scheme involved a fake company claiming ties to the Astor family
- $450 million in company shares used as collateral for a $115 million loan
- Shares were liquidated, and Salinas was falsely accused of defaulting on the loan
Salinas was seeking a $100 million loan in 2021, which he intended to secure with shares of a company he owned. Sklarov, using the name Gregory Mitchell and claiming to be the "managing director" of Astor Asset Group, convinced Salinas that his company could provide the loan. Under a deal signed around July 2021, Sklarov agreed to lend Salinas at least $115 million, with the money claimed to come from the Astor family.
Salinas secured the loan with company shares worth at least $450 million that were supposed to be held but not sold. However, Sklarov then sold the company shares, used some of the proceeds to fund the loan to Salinas, and kept the remaining hundreds of millions of dollars for himself and other conspirators. It wasn't until July 2024 that Salinas learned the company shares had been liquidated.
Sklarov was arrested on Saturday in Chicago on an indictment by a federal grand jury in New York City. A detention hearing is scheduled for Friday in federal court in Chicago. Sklarov's hometown is listed as Athens, Greece, but he is reportedly a Ukrainian-born American who had been convicted of fraud in the past.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Salinas Pliego expressed his regret and confusion over falling victim to the scheme, stating, "I feel like an absolute idiot. How could I fall for this?" Sklarov denies any wrongdoing, claiming he never mentioned or alluded to the Astor family.
How this summary was created
This summary synthesizes reporting from 3 independent publishers using AI. All sources are cited and linked below. NewsBalance is a news aggregator and media literacy tool, not a news publisher. AI-generated content may contain errors or inaccuracies — always verify important information with the original sources.