A student at New York University is suing her roommate because she says she found stolen jewelry and handbags worth about $51,000.
Aurora Agapov, 19, sued her neighbor Kaitlyn Fung and Fung’s mother, saying that Fung, 18, planned to steal Agapov’s expensive things and sell some of them on an online market for luxury goods that are used again.
Andre Agapov is Agapov’s father. He is a Russian-American mining mogul and the CEO of a gold mining business.
The suit says Aurora Agapov found out in May that some of her things were stolen from their Founders’ Hall room. The claim says she also found a receipt from the online consignment shop The RealReal that was written to Fung and listed the things that were missing.
For the lawsuit, Agapov made Fung log in to The RealReal. The account reportedly showed several things Fung was trying to sell, such as a nearly $24,000 18-karat ring, a $3,300 Celine tote, and a $4,000 Chanel handbag.
There were already things that had been sold. A Bvlgari necklace that went for $2,485 and a Chanel band that went for $175. The suit claims that both things were sold for a lot less than what they were really worth on the market. The suit says the collar and bracelet were worth about $13,000 and $2,000, respectively.
The lawsuit says that other stolen things, like a Gucci handbag, Christian Louboutin shoes, and a Celine handbag, were sold but then given back to Fung.
Agapov told the cops about Fung, who was from Old Tappan, New Jersey, and he was arrested on May 2. A police spokesman said she was charged with grand theft.
According to the lawsuit, when Agapov went to The RealReal store in New York City, an employee told him that Fung’s mother had told them to send the things that hadn’t sold to her house.
On LinkedIn, Fung says she studies politics and crime. On Tuesday, neither she nor her mother could be reached at the phone numbers given. In the court papers, there was no information about their lawyers.
In the case, Agapov says that Fung and her mother “have failed and refused” to give her back the things that were stolen.
A representative for The RealReal said that the company is working with the police and none of the items that were allegedly stolen are still in their hands.
A representative said in a statement that all consignors must sign a document saying that they have the right to sell the things and that they are not stolen.
“If we receive any information that items might be stolen, we act fast by removing the items from the site and starting an investigation,” it said.
NYU refused to speak on the specific incident, but they did say that stealing from roommates is not common at the school and is a “lousy thing to do.” Anyone caught stealing from a roommate would probably be kicked out of the apartment right away and have to deal with harsh punishments like suspension.
