Jacob Arabo

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Jacob Arabo (a.k.a. "Jacob the Jeweler") is a Bukharian-American jeweler and founder of Jacob & Company.

Early life

Born Yakov Arabov,[1] he emigrated with his family when he was 14 from the former Soviet Union republic of Uzbekistan[2] to the United States and later adopted the professional version of his name: Jacob Arabo.[1] As a youngster he had an interest in his family’s jewelry and time pieces. At age 16, he discontinued his formal education before completing high school and enrolled in a six-month jewelry-making course, which he graduated four months later.[1][2] By the time he was 17 years old he was designing his own pieces in his own jewelry factory near New York City's diamond district.[1][3]

Career

Initially selling his pieces from a kiosk in the Kaplan Jewelry Exchange (in the heart of New York City’s jewelry district), by the age of 21, Arabo had officially started his own company, called Diamond Quasar, and began designing his own Jacob & Co. branded jewelry.[4][5]

Although he started out offering moderately priced, traditional jewelry, Arabo’s design sense soon caught the eyes of celebrities, singers, and artists in the hip-hop and rap music world. In the early 1990s his clientele and business grew, and Arabo became known as “Jacob the Jeweler”.[3]

In 2005 he relocated to a "mine-inspired" storefront on East 57th Street. The townhouse space is adorned with Arabo’s signature five-time-zone watches.[6]

Conviction

In June 2006, Arabo was arrested on charges of money laundering and conspiracy in connection with the Detroit-based Black Mafia Family, as well as for not declaring large cash purchases to the IRS. In October 2007, after admitting to lying to investigators, Arabo and his attorney, Ben Brafman, entered a plea in which the more serious charges of money-laundering were dropped.[3] In June 2008, Arabo was sentenced to two and a half years in prison, fined $50,000, and ordered to forfeit $2 million to the U.S. government. Arabo was released from jail in April 2010.[7]

Awards

Jacob & Co.’s watch, “The World is Yours”, was a 2006 Travel + Leisure Design Award winner.[8]

In popular culture

Arabo was featured in the game Def Jam Fight For NY, in which the players' hip-hop characters compete to earn cash with which they can buy jewelry from Jacob the Jeweler.[3]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Is Hip-Hop’s Jeweler on the Rocks?". Vanity Fair. November 2006. Retrieved March 29, 2013. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Jacob Arabov: From Rags to Riches" (Press release). Free Press Release. January 25, 2011. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Jacob the Jeweler". Cityfile. Retrieved June 9, 2011. 
  4. ↑ "The New York Times". August 15, 1999. Retrieved April 24, 2013. 
  5. ↑ "Timepieces". Haute Living Magazine. Retrieved September 2011. 
  6. ↑ "Jacob&Co.". New York Magazine. Retrieved October 2011. 
  7. ↑ Gil Kaufman (June 24, 2008). "Jacob 'The Jeweler' Arabov, Diamond Merchant To Countless Rappers, Sentenced To Two And A Half Years In Prison". MTV.com. Retrieved June 9, 2011. 
  8. ↑ Levent Ozler. "Travel + Leisure Magazine Names Winners of Second Annual Design Awards". Dexigner. Retrieved February 16, 2006. 

External links

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