The previous Vornado Realty Belief leasing govt charged with stealing tens of millions from Steve Roth’s REIT could have his day in court docket.
Jared Solomon’s trial on federal fraud fees has been scheduled for April 14 on the U.S. District Court docket in Decrease Manhattan.
Solomon was arrested in December 2024 and charged with embezzling greater than $9.5 million from Vornado over a interval of 15 years. If discovered responsible, he faces as much as 20 years in jail.
A supply accustomed to the allegations advised The Actual Deal that they must do with Vornado’s Occasions Sq. signage enterprise.
In response to prosecutors, Solomon created fake brokerage firms named Margoux Media and Cobalt Advisors after which submitted invoices to Vornado for work he claimed the businesses had carried out.
“The defendant carried out his fraud scheme through the use of faux business actual property agreements — primarily faux dealer agreements, amongst different kinds of agreements — and pretend invoices that known as for Sufferer Firm-1 to concern checks and wire funds to certainly one of three purported actual property dealer firms,” prosecutors wrote in court docket papers.
Federal prosecutors initially redacted his employer’s identify from their indictment, referring to Vornado solely as “Sufferer Firm 1.” However a newly unredacted indictment now identifies Vornado.
The U.S. Lawyer’s workplace stated Solomon used the stolen cash to purchase a $4.5 million Westchester dwelling at 3 Beverly Street in Buy, New York, and a $3.6 million co-op residence at 23 East 74th Road.
In a newly filed movement, prosecutors stated Solomon lied below oath concerning the Westchester dwelling.
In a separate case in household court docket, they are saying he testified below oath in a deposition {that a} member of the family had supplied $4.5 million in money for the acquisition and that Solomon and his ex-wife signed the deed just for property planning functions.
That was a lie, prosecutors say citing financial institution information that present how funds Solomon billed from Vornado went into the phony firms he arrange, after which to purchasing the house.
Solomon had sought to have sure proof excluded from the trial, arguing that the acquisition of luxurious houses may painting him as rich or extravagant and create a “wealth-based bias” amongst jurors.
He stated that might result in a trial inside a trial requiring testimony from accountants and bankers — an argument the prosecutors rejected.
“There can be no mini-trial,” prosecutors wrote. “There can be no prolonged detour into the divorce proceedings, custody disputes, or another side of the New Jersey litigation. The Authorities intends solely to point out, by way of Solomon’s personal phrases, that he lied below oath concerning the very fraud proceeds on the coronary heart of this case.”
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