Three Queens men charged with face mask price-gouging

The Queens Criminal Courthouse. Eagle file photo by David Brand

By Victoria Merlino

Three Queens residents have been accused of price-gouging after allegedly selling medical masks for 10 times their normal price, police said.

Yuriy Borukhov, 33, Maisey Khovasov, 23, and Michael Borukhov, 23 allegedly sold face masks, usually worth $1 each, for $10 a piece, according to police. The three defendants were issued desk appearance tickets and will be formally charged with a New York City Administrative Code violation, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office. 

An undercover detective met the three men on April 17 after responding to an online advertisement offering 1,000 face masks for $10 each, the DA’s Office said. He gave them $10,000 in cash for boxes of R95 face masks, after which the men were quickly arrested for price gouging, the DA’s Office added. 

An emergency March rule from New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection made it illegal to increase the normal prices of items needed to stop the spread of coronavirus, like masks, hand sanitizer and soap, by more than 10 percent. 

“Exploiting people’s need to protect themselves for personal gain is always wrong,” said NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea. “It is unconscionable in an ongoing pandemic, when everyone from healthcare providers to police officers to everyday New Yorkers needs this life-saving equipment.”