Maryland’s attorney general is investigating Jared Kushner’s family business over allegations of abusive debt collection and disgusting living conditions at several properties — the latest scrutiny the business is facing.
According to CNN, Attorney General Brian Frosh is investigating media reports of coercive tactics and poor upkeep — including claims of mouse infestations, aggressive rent collection, and appliance failures — in multifamily housing developments run by Westminster Management. Westminster is an affiliate of Kushner Companies — Kushner’s family real estate business.
“We have been working with the Maryland Attorney General’s Office to provide information in response to its request,” a spokesman for Kushner Companies told CNN. “We are in compliance with all state and local laws.”
A spokesman for the AG refused to confirm to CNN if an investigation was underway.
Westminster manages approximately 17 properties in Maryland, and Kushner’s financial disclosure form shows an income of $1.6 million from the affiliate, according to CNN.
The New York Times published a harrowing description of living conditions at properties owned by the company, including the following description of a mouse infestation:
At Essex Park, east of the city, Marquita Parmely, the truck driver, told me she had a mouse infestation that was severe enough that her 12-year-old daughter recently found one in her bed. Parmely also has a 2-year-old with asthma, which is aggravated by allergens in mice droppings. She moved her own bed and other furniture away from the walls to dissuade mice, kept the family’s laundry in tote bags after mice started appearing in the hamper and vacuumed twice a day. Her neighbor told me it took weeks for staff members to replace a rear window that had been shot out by kids with a BB gun.
While an investigation does not mean that charges will be filed, the Maryland situation is the latest controversy to rock Kushner’s family business. While Kushner has stepped down from the business, it still bears his family’s name.
The business was reportedly subpoenaed this year over its use of an investment-for-immigration scheme that it was believed to be hawking to potential Chinese investors.
The company made headlines in May when Kushner’s sister, Nicole Kushner Meyer, made a pitch to Chinese investors for the project while teasing green cards.
An ad for the event said, “Invest $500,000 and immigrate to the United States.”
President Trump has taken a strong stance on immigration and has looked to tighten the abuse of various work visas, but a speaker reportedly seemed to be guiding investors to avoid that hazard: “Invest early, and you will invest under the old rules.”
The Kushner family later apologized for mentioning the business’s connection to the Trump administration in the pitch.
Adam Shaw is a Breitbart News politics reporter based in New York. Follow Adam on Twitter: @AdamShawNY