Immigrant construction worker Ivan Frias, 36, thought he was certified in fall protection by construction safety school Valor Security & Investigations. But on Nov. 28, 2022, he fell 15 floors to his death while working on a non-union construction site in the Upper West Side.
The school, in fact, was a sham. Court reports later detailed how the school fabricated safety certificates without providing proper training. The night after Frias’s death, workers’ rights activists held a makeshift vigil outside the scaffolding where Frias died. Documented was the first to report Frias’ death, and at the time, his name had not been released.
Three years later, Alexander Shaporov, president of Valor Security, is finally being held accountable for Frias’ death. On June 6, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced that Shaporov pleaded guilty in a New York State Supreme Court to one count of attempted enterprise corruption, ten counts of offering a false instrument, and one count of reckless endangerment.
As part of the plea agreement, Shaporov will serve one year in jail in addition to completing 100 hours of community service and forfeiting $100,000. Valor’s security license was also revoked.
“Valor Security is facing accountability for operating a sham safety training school, imperiling the workers in one of New York’s most dangerous industries,” said DA Bragg in a statement to Documented. “Valor’s President, Alexander Shaporov, also admitted to recklessly endangering Ivan Frias, who tragically died when he fell from a construction site without proper training.”
According to court documents, Valor boasted that it had trained approximately 20,000 students between December 2019 and April 2023. Despite Valor’s claims that they provided “safety training, safety inspections, safety plans, and security services” that promised to comply with governmental regulatory agencies, prosecutors found that Valor instead concocted an elaborate scheme that issued thousands of safety certificates and cards to workers without ever really training them.
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Workers like Frias would pay up to $600 for what turned out to be fraudulent OSHA certification cards and other safety credentials. Meanwhile, surveillance footage obtained by Documented showed that Valor classrooms were sitting empty during scheduled classes.
Shaporov is alleged to have pocketed nearly $1 million in immigrant workers’ hard-earned cash, according to court records. The profits allegedly fueled an extravagant lifestyle for Shaporov, who spent the money on luxury goods such as homes, cars, jewelry, and even a yacht.
Shaporov’s guilty plea marks the eighth Valor official to have reached a plea deal. Last year, DA Bragg prosecuted Uktam Tohirov, a low-ranking broker for Valor Security. The charges convicted him of multiple criminal counts. Last February, DA Bragg announced that the New York State Supreme Court had indicted 27 executives and employees in total.
Shaporov is expected to be formally sentenced on Oct. 3, 2025.
