East Village Explosion Site Sold For $9.15M

EAST VILLAGE, NY — The site of the deadly East Village gas explosion was sold to a developer last month for $9.15 million, according to property records.

A developer bought the plot of land, located at 119 and 121 Second Ave., that in 2015 was the site of the gas explosion that killed two people and injured a dozen more, the New York Post was first to report. The seller, Maria Hrynenko, is currently facing manslaughter charges in connection with the explosion. (For more East Village and NYC news, subscribe here for free breaking news alerts and updates from Patch.)

Property records show that in May, developer Yaniv Shaky Cohen bought both plots of land from LLCs registered to Hrynenko. Cohen signed the sale documents for the Avenue Second Owner LLC, a newly registered corporation. According to the Post, Cohen works for the Nexus Building Development Group Inc.

Hrynenko and four other people were indicted in connection with the explosion, which killed Moises Locon and Nicholas Figueroa in Sushi Park, a restaurant inside 121 Second Ave. Hrynenko, 57, is facing charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. Prosecutors said that the explosion was the result of an illegal gas delivery system that Hrynenko and her co-defendants had set up inside the buildings. Authorities say that a shoddy gas delivery system inside the building caused the explosion on March 26, 2015.

Lead image via FDNY.