Crime07 May, 20262 min read
Vladimir Sklarov Accused Of Using Astor Name To Dupe Ricardo Salinas Pliego
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Vladimir Sklarov charged in the U.S. with stealing about $450 million from Ricardo Salinas Pliego. He created Astor Asset Group and claimed Astor family links.
Astor Name Loan Scheme
Vladimir Sklarov, 63, is accused in a newly unsealed U.S. indictment of using the Astor family name to dupe Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego in a bogus stock-backed loan scheme. Prosecutors say Sklarov set up a sham company called Astor Asset Group and pretended it was a legitimate and experienced loan provider connected to the Astors.
The indictment says Salinas was seeking a $100 million loan in 2021 and that Sklarov agreed to lend him at least $115 million, claiming the money would 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, and prosecutors say Sklarov then sold the shares and kept the remaining hundreds of millions of dollars for himself and other conspirators.
Arrest, Aliases, Court Dates
Sklarov, who also goes by the names Gregory Mitchell and Mark Simon Bentley, was arrested in Chicago on Saturday after being indicted by a federal grand jury in New York City. The Associated Press reports that a detention hearing is scheduled for Friday in federal court in Chicago, while Sky News says Sklarov appeared in court on Monday. Prosecutors accuse Sklarov of representing his company as affiliated with, and having the financial backing of, the famed New York Astor family “in order to burnish his brand.”
Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement that “That was a complete lie. Sklarov used false prestige to gain control of hundreds of millions of dollars in stock and then liquidated those shares for his own benefit.”
Victim Reaction and Stakes
Ricardo Salinas Pliego confirmed to the Wall Street Journal last year that he was ripped off by Astor Asset Group, telling the newspaper, “I feel like an absolute idiot. How could I fall for this?” Prosecutors say it wasn’t until July 2024 that Salinas learned the company shares had been liquidated, and that a day later he received a letter from Astor falsely claiming he had defaulted on the loan.
“I feel like an absolute idiot. How could I fall for this?”
The indictment also describes how Astor wrongly informed Salinas a month earlier that it had the right to sell the shares, according to prosecutors. With charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, each carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, the case centers on whether the alleged scheme will lead to long-term federal punishment for Sklarov and any co-conspirators.