Daniel Kundhurov,…
By Brendan Browne
The owner of a Rego Park delicatessen was acquitted of charges that he hired arsonists to burn down a rival produce store in 1998 after only about a week of testimony in Brooklyn federal court July 16, a clerk at the courthouse said.
Daniel Kundhurov, 30, a Russian immigrant, beat arson and conspiracy charges involving a fire that destroyed Farmers Best Bazaar at 92-01 63rd Dr. and five other businesses on Jan. 6, 1998, the clerk said.
Though two government witnesses testified that Kundhurov, who owns A&D Delicatessen a block away from Farmers Best Bazaar, paid them to burn down the rival store, jurors were not convinced of his guilt, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Katya Jestin, who prosecuted the case.
Defense Attorney Benjamin Brafman said he reminded jurors that those witnesses, Mani Chulpayev and Andrey Yakubov, had criminal backgrounds and had agreed to testify in plea agreements that they signed to have sentences against them reduced.
Brafman said he tried to paint the two witnesses as untrustworthy criminals who were only testifying to escape more jail time for themselves. He told jurors that Chulpayev and Yakubov had admitted in their plea agreements to being part of a Russian organized crime “Brigade” and taking part in several crimes including arson, extortion, mail fraud and kidnapping.
“The witnesses lacked credibility and were exposed as such ruthless criminals,” said Brafman, adding that he called no witnesses because he believed the prosecution failed to prove its case.
Just days after Chulpayev and Yakubov testified in the case, a federal judge sentenced them to time served even though they acknowledged their roles in several crimes, Jestin said.
At the time of the fire, Farmers Best Bazaar was just a two-week-old gourmet food and produce store that neighbors described as a “beautiful” addition to the neighborhood. The store was rebuilt a year later.
The fire was large enough to destroy Golden Croissant House, Rego Wok, Nick’s Pizzeria, Malik Grocery and Halal Meat, and the Thrift Shop. It also badly damaged L.T. Real Estate and the Coffee Shop.
Reach reporter Brendan Browne by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or by phone at 229-0300, Ext. 155.
