| Guilty
Verdict on Fishbein
For Real Estate
Fraud Now He Asks 48
Months in Fort Dix
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
Feb 6 – A
trial began on
April 18, 2023
in US v. Paul
Fishbein,
before U.S.
District Court
for the
Southern
District of
New York Judge
Paul A.
Crotty. Inner
City Press was
there.
The
prosecutors
say Fishbein
"is
charged with
theft of
government
funds, wire
fraud, and
mail fraud for
defrauding
rental
assistance
programs by
falsely
claiming to be
the owner and
landlord of 20
properties in
New York City,
renting out
the properties
to families in
need through
the rental
assistance
programs, and
collecting
money as the
purported
owner and
landlord of
the
properties."
The
Assistant US
Attorney's
opening
described the
program
defrauded, the
notaries whose
signatures
were forged,
the real
estate broker
whose license
was
usurped.
Fishbein's
lawyer
reminded the
jurors of the
2008 subprime
lending
meltdown, and
said his
client was an
unsophisticated
real estate
investor -
that Fishbein
was the
victim, of bad
advice.
On
April 19, the
government had
on the witness
stand a Ms.
Brown from NYC
HRA,
testifying
about Medicare
eligibility
and the
requirement to
disclose all
assets
including
those of
household
members. The
jurors
appeared less
than
transfixed.
On
April 20, the
real estate
broker who
said Fishbein
"got ahold" of
her license
was on the
witness stand.
On cross
examination
she
acknowledged
emailing
Fishbein a
copy of her
licence, no
less than
three times,
and to provide
information
about Fishbein
to a lawyer,
David
Rutherford.
She also
acknowledged
not always
checking New
York’s
"Automated
City Register
Information
System"
(ACRIS);
multiple
objections
from the AUSA
were overruled
by Judge
Crotty (who
previously was
the
Commissioner
of the City's
housing
agency).
On
April 24,
Fishbein
himself was on
the stand,
blaming his
problems on
lawyer David
Broderick. His
lawyer asked,
Why did you
switch
representation
from Snipes to
Broderick?
Fishbein
blamed it on a
paralegal he
met in the
courthouse,
Diana
Rodriguez.
Bigger
picture, he
described the
real estate
Wild West of
the era of Predatory
Bender...
(reviews
I, II)
On
April 27, the
verdict:
"conviction in
federal court
of PAUL
FISHBEIN of
multiple
counts of
fraud and
aggravated
identity
theft.
FISHBEIN stole
hundreds of
thousands of
dollars from
rental
assistance
programs
administered
by New York
City’s Human
Resources
Administration
(“HRA”) and
New York
City’s Housing
Preservation
&
Development
(“HPD,” and
with HRA, the
“Agencies”) by
renting out
properties
throughout the
City that he
falsely
claimed to own
and by
collecting
made-up broker
fees.
FISHBEIN was
also convicted
of Medicaid
fraud."
On
February 5,
2024 the US
Attorney's
Office wrote
in and
requested a
top of the
Guideline
sentence of 95
months.
On
February 6
Fishbein
through
counsel asked
for 48 months,
in Fort Dix.
The
case is
US v.
Fishbein,
21-cr-296
(Crotty)
***
Your
support means a lot. As little as $5 a month
helps keep us going and grants you access to
exclusive bonus material on our Patreon
page. Click
here to become a patron.
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA
Mail: Box 20047, Dag
Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest
service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2023 Inner City
Press, Inc. To request reprint or other
permission, e-contact Editorial [at]
innercitypress.com
|
,
