NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A federal grand jury indicted two men for fraud in an AirBnB and Vrbo scam that impacted thousands of people. The men owned properties all over the country, including Nashville.
The two men, 35-year-old Shray Goel of Miami, and 34-year-old Shaunik Raheja of Denver, are accused of misleading listings, fraudulently canceling reservations, and discriminating against Black renters in a bait-and-switch scam.
They are accused of fraud in connection with more than 10 thousand reservations across almost 100 properties in cities in 10 states: Los Angeles; Malibu, California; Marina Del Rey, California; Denver; Chicago; Davenport, Florida; Savannah, Georgia; Bloomington, Indiana; South Bend, Indiana; Cleveland; Nashville, Tennessee; Austin and Dallas, Texas; and Milwaukee.
Investigators said the men would double book properties using multiple listings on AirBnB and Vrbo. Then they would accept the renter willing to pay the most in a secret bidding war, and make up last-minute, fake, excuses to cancel overbooked guests — such as a plumbing issue.
They are also accused of being prejudiced in their decision of which guests to keep by avoiding Black renters.
Investigators said they would also use fake host names, list fake addresses, and even post fake, positive reviews.
Through 2018 and 2019 they received more than 8 million dollars on these reservations.
They each face up to 20 years in federal prison for wire fraud and 2 year added sentence for identity theft.
My friend and colleague Carrie Sharp had a lot of fun last week, on an adventure to a country more than three thousand miles away! She’s back now – sharing her Adventures in Iceland through stories, and incredible images of this remarkably beautiful and unique island nation (kudos to Chief Photographer Catherine Steward)! But did you know Nashville has something very important in common with Iceland? Tourism! Here, Carrie explains how a volcanic eruption decades ago helped save the country’s economy from collapse!
-Rhori Johnston
