CON MEN, CORPORATION PLEAD GUILTY IN DEED FRAUD SCHEME TO STEAL HOUSES IN QUEENS, NASSAU

 

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Russell Carbone and Terrell Hill pleaded guilty to a wide-ranging scheme to steal residential properties by filing forged deeds with city officials. As part of the plea, the court voided deeds to seven homes in Queens and two in Nassau County so they could be returned to their rightful owners.

Carbone and Hill worked together to target homes where the owners died and their heirs had not taken title to them. To help find the properties, Hill, a landscaper, would alert Carbone, a disbarred attorney, to homes that appeared abandoned. Most turned out to have gone into foreclosure.

District Attorney Katz said: “When I started the Housing and Worker Protection Bureau three years ago, I promised to protect homeowners from predatory real estate scams that often target vulnerable neighborhoods. Since then, we have undone the criminal handiwork of scammers and con artists and pioneered the use of a state statute to return stolen properties to their rightful owners. With the conclusion of this prosecution, the largest we have undertaken so far, our office will have restored a total of 14 homes to their rightful owners.”

Carbone, 69, of Beach Ninth Street in Far Rockaway, and Hill, 40, of Woodfield Road, West Hempstead, pleaded guilty before Queens Supreme Court Justice Leigh Cheng to scheme to defraud in the first degree and six counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree. RC Couture Realty Inc., a corporation run by Carbone and his wife, Galyna Couture, 61, pleaded guilty to criminal possession of stolen property in the first degree and six counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree.

In addition to forfeiting the ill-gotten deeds, Carbone will pay $56,960 in restitution. The money represents rent payments he collected after illegally taking over properties and leasing them out. The money will go to the heirs of the legitimate property owners. Carbone’s license as a notary was also revoked.

R.C. Couture Realty must pay a $100,000 fine.

Hill is also expected to face up to three years in prison when he is sentenced on January 30, 2024.

The Queens homes stolen were located on 116th Road, 115th Avenue, 148th Street and 192nd Street in Jamaica; on 131st Avenue in Laurelton Gardens; and on 104th Avenue and 192nd Street in St. Albans.

In Nassau County, the homes were on Pinebrook Avenue in West Hempstead and Advent Street in Westbury.

In some instances, the deeds were transferred more than once among the defendants and entities connected to them, resulting in 14 deeds for nine homes.

In two additional cases that were part of the charged scheme to defraud, Carbone and Hill had already agreed to relinquish deeds to the legitimate owners.

And in another case, the duo had already sold a home on 148th Street in Jamaica to a third party. The District Attorney’s office will file a motion to apply a state statute and restore that deed to its rightful owner, sparing the victim the time and expense of additional legal proceedings in civil court.

According to the charges and plea agreements:

• Between November 8, 2019, and February 14, 2023, Hill and Carbone forged signatures on property records to transfer to themselves the ownership of multiple properties.
• The signatures were notarized with fraudulent notary stamps that Hill ordered from Amazon in the names of actual notaries. Carbone also used his own, legitimate notary stamp on some documents.
• The fraudulent documents were filed with the New York City Department of Finance.

In the case of the home on 116th Road in Jamaica, Hill called a Bronx woman in November 2019 about possibly selling the house, which she had inherited with her brother. Following the phone conversation, Hill introduced the victim to his “business partner,” Carbone, who met the woman at a local coffee shop to discuss the sale. The woman declined the purchase offer.

A deed transferring title to the property was filed nonetheless on March 12, 2021, indicating that RC Couture Realty, Inc. and Terrell Hill each owned a 48% interest in the property and the victim and her sibling each owned a 1% share.

Hill and Carbone forged the siblings’ signatures on the deed transfer documents, which were stamped with a fraudulent notary stamp and Carbone’s legitimate stamp.

The actual notary told investigators that the stamp was not hers. Hill’s Amazon records showed he ordered a notary stamp with this notary’s information and had it shipped to his home in West Hempstead.

In another case, a 2021 deed transfer for a home on Sutter Avenue in Jamaica included the purported signature of an heir to the property’s original owner. The document said the home was transferred to Carbone and Hill with the heir retaining 1% ownership.

The heir said he did not sign the document. The notary whose stamp is on the paperwork also said he did not sign, nor stamp, the document. Hill’s Amazon records showed another purchase shipped to his home in West Hempstead for a notary stamp with this notary’s information as well.

A nephew of the property’s original owner was living in the home and Carbone wrote to him, portraying himself as the new owner trying to “make a deal” to get him to leave. Carbone then started eviction proceedings against him.

Facing a civil lawsuit, Hill and Carbone agreed to void the deed, returning the home to the rightful owner.

Governor Hochul Reminds New Yorkers of Upcoming Minimum Wage Increase

 

Beginning January 1, New York’s Minimum Wage Will Increase to $16-Per-Hour in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County and $15-Per Hour in the Rest of the State

Part of Historic, Multi-Year Plan to Increase New York’s Minimum Wage Through 2027 Then Index it to Inflation

Minimum Wage for Home Care Aides Will Also Increase to $18.55-Per-Hour in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County and $17.55-Per-Hour in the Rest of the State

Minimum Wage Workers Who Do Not See Increase Reflected in Their Paychecks Are Encouraged to File a Wage Complaint With the New York State Department of Labor Here 

Governor Kathy Hochul today reminded New Yorkers that the state’s minimum wage will increase on January 1, 2024 as part of a historic, multi-year plan to increase the minimum wage and index it to inflation. Per an agreement between Governor Hochul and the New York State Legislature, New York’s minimum wage will increase to $16-per-hour hour in New York City, Westchester, and Long Island, and $15-per-hour in the rest of the state. Additionally, the minimum wage for home care aides will increase to $18.55 an hour in New York City, Westchester, and Long Island and $17.55 an hour in counties in upstate New York. Raising New York's minimum wage to keep pace with inflation will benefit hundreds of thousands of minimum wage workers across the state.

“New York’s historic minimum wage increase will help to ensure that New Yorkers can continue to keep pace with rising costs,” Governor Hochul said. “Starting January 1, minimum wage workers who do not see the increase reflected in their paychecks are urged to file a complaint with the Department of Labor to make sure that they get the wages they are owed.”

New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said, "The elevation of the minimum wage serves as lifeline for New Yorkers struggling to make ends meet as costs rise. Steady, multi-year changes allow businesses time to adjust while providing low-wage workers the ability to better support themselves and their families."

As part of the FY 2024 Budget, Governor Hochul secured an historic agreement to increase New York’s minimum wage through 2026 and index it to inflation beginning in 2027. After the initial increase, the minimum wage will increase by $0.50 in 2025 and 2026. In 2027, the minimum wage will increase annually at a rate determined by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for the Northeast Region – the best regional measure of inflation. An "off-ramp" is available in the event of certain economic or budget conditions.

The minimum wage increases for the next three years are shown below:

Effective Date	New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County	Remainder of New York State
Current Minimum Wage	$15/hour	$14.20/hour
January 1, 2024	$16/hour	$15/hour
January 1, 2025	$16.50/hour	$15.50/hour
January 1, 2026	$17/hour	$16/hour

Indexing the minimum wage to inflation will help to maintain the purchasing power of workers' wages from year to year. Increasing the minimum wage overall overwhelmingly benefits low-income workers, particularly women and people of color who comprise a disproportionate share of minimum wage workers.

Eighteen other states either currently tie their minimum wage to inflation or some other economic formula or are slated to do so, including three states which have minimum wages at or above $15 in 2023. Economic research shows that raising the minimum wage can lead to reductions in poverty, reduced social assistance spending, stimulative spending, improved worker productivity, and other benefits.

The New York State Department of Labor is conducting a public awareness effort to remind New Yorkers about the minimum wage increase and encourage minimum wage workers to report missing wages. That effort will include digital outreach via social media, newsletters, and e-mail communications and direct outreach to distribute informational flyers with partnering organizations.

Minimum wage earners who do not see the increase reflected in their paychecks can file a wage complaint on the New York State Department of Labor’s website or by calling 833-910-4378. For more information about NYSDOL’s efforts to combat wage theft, visit the Department’s landing page.

NYC Comptroller Lander and City Pension Funds’ 2023 Shareowner Initiatives Postseason Report Highlights Leadership on Responsible Investment

 

Systems secured historic wins at Starbucks and Wells Fargo amid a challenging year for shareholder proposals and ongoing attempts to misinform about ESG

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and the boards of the New York City retirement systems (NYCRS) released the annual Shareowner Initiatives Postseason Report for the 2023 proxy voting season. The report highlights the field-leading work of the Bureau of Asset Management’s Corporate Governance and Responsible Investment team to confront systemic, sectoral, and company-level risks through engagement with the funds’ portfolio companies.

As investment adviser to NYCRS, the Comptroller’s Office is responsible for voting the pension funds’ proxies and implementing shareholder initiatives. New York City’s pension funds have a long history of active ownership and “systemic stewardship,” from opposing apartheid in South Africa to winning “proxy access” to give shareholders the right to nominate directors at U.S. companies.

“New York City’s pension funds are longtime leaders in meaningfully engaging with some of the largest companies to achieve real progress. By pushing companies like Starbucks to respect workers freedom of association, Wells Fargo to prevent harassment and discrimination, and Fox to stop defaming people, we are helping to raise corporate governance standards and ensure a more inclusively-thriving economy. That’s good for our retirees, and good for the economy as a whole. I am grateful to our Corporate Governance and Responsible Investment team for their work to drive sustainable change throughout our investment portfolio,” said New York City Comptroller Brad Lander.

Proposals for more fair and equitable workplaces received the most support. Starbucks investors expressed their growing concern regarding the company’s labor relations and strongly supported the Systems’ proposal to request a board-commissioned assessment of the company’s adherence to its commitments to workers’ rights, including freedom of association and collective bargaining. The proposal received 52% support. Starbucks released the assessment earlier this month, showing that its actions deviated from its policies.

The Systems also secured majority support (55%) for a proposal requesting that the Wells Fargo Board of Directors prepare an annual public report describing and quantifying the effectiveness and outcomes of the company’s efforts to prevent harassment and discrimination against its protected classes of employees received a majority vote.

In addition to extensive corporate engagement, the Comptroller’s Office continued its work on myriad investor coalitions on human capital and workers’ rights and as founding members of the Climate Action 100+.

On behalf of the Systems, Comptroller Lander also penned letters to portfolio companies requesting increased disclosure and transparency on workplace concerns including 11 public companies named in a New York Times investigation as allegedly profiting from the use of U.S. suppliers that illegally employ underage migrant children.

During 2023, the Systems also sued the Fox Corporation for neglecting its duty to shareholders by opening itself up to defamation lawsuits from the persistent broadcasting of falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election.

This season, the Systems submitted shareholder proposals to 32 portfolio companies to address a broad range of risks to our portfolio companies and withdrew approximately 47% of their shareholder proposals, down from 85% in 2022. Of the proposals that went to a vote, voting support averaged 27%, down from 35% in 2022.

Overall, shareholder proposals experienced a steep decline in support across the board driven largely by the conservative backlash to environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing.

The Systems’ proposal on climate change received the least support from investors, averaging only 13% support. This included resolutions calling on JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanely, and Royal Bank of Canada to set and report on absolute emissions targets for their energy and utilities sectors, something other major banks have done.

“While we were disappointed by investors’ lack of support for common-sense climate resolutions that were entirely consistent with company performance and shareholder interests, we can’t back away from work to confront the systemic financial risks of climate change,” said Comptroller Lander. “We will be considering new options for corporate engagement and shareholder action in 2024 to insist that banks and other portfolio companies act to implement their net-zero commitments. We need to see action, backed by transparent reporting, not just words.”

In response to the backlash against ESG, Comptroller Lander joined with hundreds of private and public sector leaders to call on policymakers to protect the freedom to invest responsibly. This array of leaders reminded policymakers that building profitable businesses and investment portfolios demands an analysis of all material financial factors.  In a joint statement, the leaders argued that they should be free to consider material factors relevant to the sustainability of business: “Our consideration of material environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors is not political or ideological. Incorporating these issues into financial decision-making represents good corporate governance, prudent risk management, and smart investment practice consistent with fiduciary duty.”

The Systems voted on 16,552 shareholder meetings in 70 markets globally. This includes 3,126 annual and special meetings for U.S. companies. In addition, the Systems voted against the election of 34.7% of directors in the U.S. market.

The annual postseason report covers proxy voting and shareholder proposal outcomes for the 12 months ending June 30, 2023. It includes detail on each shareholder proposal.

Proxy voting decisions for each of the Systems can be viewed here, and are available within 24 to 48 hours of electronic votes being submitted.

In addition to Comptroller Lander, the trustees of the aforementioned systems are as follows:

Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS): Mayor Eric Adams’ Appointee Bryan Berge, Director, Mayor’s Office of Pension and Investments; Chancellor’s Representative, Dr. Angela Green, New York City Department of Education Panel for Educational Policy; and Thomas Brown (Chair), Victoria Lee, and David Kazansky, all of the United Federation of Teachers.

New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS): Mayor Eric Adams’ Appointee Bryan Berge, Director, Mayor’s Office of Pension and Investments; New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams; Borough Presidents: Mark Levine (Manhattan), Antonio Reynoso (Brooklyn), Donovan Richards Jr. (Queens), Vito Fossella (Staten Island), and Vanessa L. Gibson (Bronx); Henry Garrido, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME; Richard Davis, President Transport Workers Union Local 100; and Gregory Floyd, President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 237.

New York City Police Pension Fund (Police): Mayor Eric Adams’ Representative Bryan Berge, Director, Mayor’s Office of Pension and Investments;  New York City Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh (Chair); New York City Finance Commissioner Preston Niblack; Andrew Ansbro, President, Robert Eustace, Vice President, Chris Viola, Treasurer, and Eric Bischoff, Staten Island Representative and Chair, Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York; Sean Michael, Chiefs’ Rep., Joe Camastro, Lieutenants’ Rep. and Liam Guilfoyle, (Chair), Uniformed Fire Officers Association; and Peter Devita, Marine Engineers Association.

New York City Fire Pension Fund (Fire):  Mayor Eric Adams’ Representative Bryan Berge, Director, Mayor’s Office of Pension and Investments; New York City Finance Commissioner Preston Niblack; New York City Police Commissioner Edward Caban (Chair); Chris Monahan, Captains Endowment Association; Louis Turco, Lieutenants Benevolent Association; Vincent Vallelong, Sergeants Benevolent Association; Paul DiGiacomo, Detectives Endowment Association; and Patrick Hendry, Daniel Terrelli, Albert Alcierno and Arthur Egner all of the NYC Police Benevolent Association.

Board of Education Retirement System (BERS): Schools Chancellor David C. Banks, Represented by Karine Apollon; Mayoral appointees Lilly Chan, Marjorie Dienstag, Gregory Faulkner, Anita Garcia, Anthony Giordano, Dr. Angela Green, Alan Ong, Phoebe Sade-Arnold, Maisha Sapp, Venus Sze-Tsang, Gladys Ward; CEC appointees Naveed Hasan, Jessamyn Lee, Thomas Sheppard, and Ephraim Zakry; Borough President Appointees Geneal Chacon (Bronx); Tazin Azad (Brooklyn); Kaliris Salas-Ramirez (Manhattan); Sheree Gibson (Queens); Aaron Bogad (Staten Island); and employee members John Maderich of the IUOE Local 891 and Donald Nesbit of District Council 37, Local 372.