Two New York City marshals whose work collecting debts for predatory lenders is continuing to make them millionaires, Bloomberg News reported. Vadim Barbarovich, who already had the most lucrative city job in 2017, made 11 percent more last year, earning $1.9 million, according to documents released in response to a public-records request. His main competitor in collections work for the cash-advance industry, Stephen Biegel, almost doubled his take to $1.4 million. The two marshals were the subjects of a Bloomberg News article in November detailing how they collect debts from small-business owners across the country by seizing cash from bank accounts and pocketing a share for themselves, often stretching the limits of their jurisdiction. The article prompted Mayor Bill de Blasio to declare that “the entire model needs a new look.” Five months later, the only sign of change is the steady climb in marshals’ earnings.“The marshals haven’t been deterred one bit,” said Shane Heskin, a lawyer who represents borrowers and has filed complaints against Barbarovich and Biegel. The New York Department of Investigation, which oversees the city’s 35 marshals, said that it has “been in touch with City Hall” but wouldn’t say whether any policy changes were in the works. Diane Struzzi, a spokeswoman for the agency, said an investigation of Barbarovich, disclosed last year, still hadn’t been completed. She declined to comment about whether any marshals had been disciplined recently for overstepping their jurisdiction. De Blasio didn’t reappoint Barbarovich when his five-year term expired in November, but he’s allowing him to remain on the job. The mayor’s office had no comment, and Barbarovich and Biegel didn’t respond to requests for comment.
