Construction Loan Secured For 120 East 144th Street In Mott Haven, The Bronx

 

The Beitel Group has secured a $150 million loan for the development of 120 East 144th Street, a new residential project in Mott Haven, The Bronx. The funding, which was supplied by SCALE Lending, will support the construction of the 13-story, 450-unit property.

120 East 144th Street was designed by S. Wieder Architect PC and will yield 289,000 square feet across 13 floors, and will offer a range of studio to two-bedroom apartments, with select units featuring private terraces. Beyond that, plans feature a variety of amenities, including an outdoor courtyard, fitness center, and a rooftop space.

Construction is being managed by Prestige Construction NY and is expected to complete by mid-2025. The site at 120 East 144th Street, which was acquired by the Beitel Group in 2022, has already undergone a number of changes, including the demolition of the original property at the address. Funding for the project is the latest in a series of loans issued by SCALE in 2024, with nearly $600 million in closings announced over the past three months for the lender.

“The need for multifamily in New York City’s residential neighborhoods continues to grow, and new housing projects like 120 East 144th Street are critical in helping meet that demand,” said Martin Nussbaum, co-founder and principal at Slate Property Group. “We’re thrilled to continue bringing new inventory online and to work with an accomplished firm such as Beitel Group, whose national portfolio and success in NYC speak for themselves.”

The closest subways from 120 East 144th Street are the 2, 4, and 5 trains at the 149th Street-Grand Concourse station.

Queens Man Sentenced To Five Years In Prison For Multimillion-Dollar Bank Fraud And Money Laundering Scheme

 

Chinwendu Alisigwe Used Fake IDs to Open Dozens of Bank Accounts, Which He Then Used to Launder Millions in Ill-Gotten Fraud Proceeds

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CHINWENDU ALISIGWE was sentenced to five years in prison for his role in a wide-ranging bank fraud and money laundering conspiracy, which resulted in the misappropriation of approximately $4.5 million in victim funds.  ALISIGWE was previously convicted by a jury following a trial before U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni, who imposed this sentence. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:  “Over the course of years, Chinwendu Alisigwe used fake IDs to open dozens of bank accounts, which he then used to launder proceeds obtained from victims of business email compromise and other fraud schemes.  Alisigwe’s co-conspirators scammed dozens of victims — including individuals, businesses, a county government, and a charity that provides wheelchairs for children — into sending money to Alisigwe’s network of bank accounts.  Alisigwe then laundered the money, spending his cut on shopping sprees and sending the rest to his co-conspirators overseas.  As today’s sentence demonstrates, money launderers who assist scammers abroad, like Alisigwe, will be held accountable by this Office.” 

According to the allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment, the evidence offered at trial, and statements made in public filings:

From approximately 2017 to 2020, ALISIGWE used fake identifications to open 36 separate bank accounts at six different financial institutions.  He opened those accounts with over a dozen fraudulent passports and other fraudulent identity documents bearing his photograph but the names of other individuals.  In the course of this criminal conduct, ALISIGWE used the names and social security numbers of real people who were completely unaware that ALISIGWE was using them in his fraud. 

After ALISIGWE opened the fraudulent bank accounts, the accounts received millions of dollars from a variety of fraud schemes, including business email compromise schemes.  The funds came from numerous victims, including a children’s charity, individual bank accounts, a public company, a life insurance company, and a county government.  In total, ALISIGWE received approximately $4.5 million of fraud proceeds into his network of bank accounts. 

After the fraud proceeds were deposited into the accounts opened by ALISIGWE, he laundered the proceeds through a series of transactions designed to disguise their nature and source.  For example, ALISIGWE consistently transferred large sums of the victims’ money from account to account that he had opened in other people’s names.  After disguising the nature and source of the fraud proceeds through these transactions, ALISIGWE wired these funds to bank accounts in foreign countries, including China and the United Kingdom.  ALISIGWE also spent large portions of the stolen money on clothing and other personal items.  For example, ALISIGWE used fraud proceeds to make approximately $100,000 in purchases from retail stores like Zara, Nordstrom, Macy’s, Best Buy, and Rockaway Liquor.  He also withdrew approximately $650,000 of the fraud proceeds in cash.  Ultimately, the transactions into and out of the 36 accounts opened by ALISIGWE amounted to nearly $6 million. 

In addition to his prison term, ALISIGWE, 38, of Jamaica, New York, was sentenced to five years of supervised release and ordered to pay $499,949.88 in restitution and $4,463,475.80 in forfeiture.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the course of this investigation.

Idaho Man Arrested for Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS

 

Alexander Scott Mercurio, 18, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, was arrested Saturday, April 6, 2024, in Coeur d’Alene for attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS.

According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint, Mercurio pledged his allegiance to ISIS and intended to commit attacks on its behalf. He planned to attack individuals at churches in Coeur d’Alene on April 7 using weapons, including knives, firearms, and fire.

The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) conducted the investigation and thwarted Mercurio’s violent plot. Mercurio is currently in custody awaiting his initial appearance which will be set by the Court.

“As alleged in the complaint, the defendant swore an oath of loyalty to ISIS and planned to wage an attack in its name on churches in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Thanks to the investigative efforts of the FBI, the defendant was taken into custody before he could act, and he is now charged with attempting to support ISIS’s mission of terror and violence. The Justice Department will continue to relentlessly pursue, disrupt, and hold accountable those who would commit acts of terrorism against the people and interests of the United States.”

“The defendant allegedly pledged loyalty to ISIS and sought to attack people attending churches in Idaho, a truly horrific plan which was detected and thwarted by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “This investigation demonstrates the FBI’s steadfast commitment to work with our law enforcement partners to stop those who wish to commit acts of violence on behalf of – or inspired by – foreign terrorist groups.”

“Across the Department of Justice, and in my office, we have no higher calling than to protect our nation and our communities from terrorism. Along with our law enforcement partners, my office will always remain laser-focused on this part of our mission,” said U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit for the District of Idaho. “I want to thank the FBI for its tireless work on this investigation and its thorough efforts to prevent violence. The support from local law enforcement was also integral to successfully disrupting the alleged plot.”

“This case should be an eye-opener to the dangers of self-radicalization, which is a real threat to our communities,” said Special Agent in Charge Shohini Sinha of the Salt Lake City FBI. “Protecting the American people from terrorism remains the FBI’s number one priority, and we continue to encourage the public to report anything suspicious to the FBI or your local law enforcement.”

Mercurio is charged by a federal complaint with attempting to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization. If convicted, Mercurio faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A federal district court judge would determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI is investigating the case with valuable assistance provided by the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, and Ada County Sheriff’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather S. Patricco and David G. Robins and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin D. Whatcott for the District of Idaho, and Charles Kovats and Andrea Broach of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.

A complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Two Charged In Connection With Scheme To Operate Industrial-Scale Illegal Narcotics Pill Pressing Operations Throughout New York City

 

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Darren B. McCormack, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”); and Frank A. Tarentino III, the Special Agent in Charge of the New York Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), announced the filing of a Complaint in Manhattan federal court charging JUAN MOISES PEREZ MENDEZ, a/k/a “Caballero,” and ODALIS EUSEBIO PERALTA BAUTISTA, a/k/a “Luis Collazo Santos,” with conspiracy to distribute narcotics and distribution of narcotics.  PEREZ MENDEZ and PERALTA BAUTISTA were arrested on Saturday evening, April 6, 2024, in the Bronx.  They were presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stewart D. Aaron.  

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “Over the past year, this Office has worked with laser focus to disrupt industrial-scale pill mills that press powdered narcotics into pills.  In the process, we have removed millions of deadly fentanyl pills, meant to mimic legitimate prescription drugs, from the street.  This past weekend, we acted again, shutting down an alleged pill mill in the Bronx and seizing large amounts of fentanyl and methamphetamine.  We also arrested the two individuals who allegedly operated that pill mill.  As alleged, one of those individuals, Juan Moises Perez Mendez, is a prolific narcotics trafficker, connected to at least two other major pill presses this Office has disrupted in the last year.  I am deeply grateful for the efforts of our law enforcement partners and the career prosecutors of this Office as we work to save lives by keeping fentanyl off the streets of our community.”    

HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Darren B. McCormack said: “These arrests are the result of the exceptional work our El Dorado Task Force does to remove the threat of lethal amounts of fentanyl-laced counterfeit prescription pills that are wreaking havoc in our communities.  HSI New York, along with our law enforcement partners, remain determined to shut down these underground poison mills and dismantle the flow of deadly substances into our communities.  The criminals who operate these illegitimate manufacturing sites will face justice for their production and distribution of illicit synthetic opioids which are responsible for perpetuating the public safety epidemic across the country.”

DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino III said: “Over the weekend, the DEA New York and our law enforcement partners conducted another successful operation resulting in two arrests and shutting down another illegal pill mill located near a school in the Bronx.  Fake pills, laced with fentanyl and methamphetamine, like the ones seized this weekend, come in every color, shape, and form, and are disguised to mirror the appearance of prescription pills, making them hard to detect by sight and extremely deadly.  This operation emphasizes our commitment to protecting communities from these fake pills and those responsible for producing them.  I commend our special agents and law enforcement partners on this successful operation.”

As alleged in the Complaint filed today in Manhattan federal court:[1]

Law enforcement has been investigating a network of drug traffickers operating industrial-scale illegal narcotics pill pressing operations in multiple locations throughout New York City.  As part of those operations, the traffickers have converted spaces in residential buildings to press large quantities of powder narcotics, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, into pill form for wholesale distribution.  At these locations, drug traffickers have manufactured millions of pills for further distribution, sometimes manufacturing hundreds of thousands of pills in a single session. 

In or about May 2023, law enforcement searched the basement of a particular building in Washington Heights (the “Washington Heights Building”), where they found large quantities of narcotics, as well as the materials and equipment necessary to press narcotics into pill form, including commercial-grade pill presses.  In connection with that search, law enforcement officers arrested Juan Efren Paulino. 

PEREZ MENDEZ appears to have entered the basement of the Washington Heights Building in the days leading up to the search and communicated with Paulino regarding narcotics.

A photograph of the narcotics recovered from the Washington Heights Building is below:

In or about October 2023, law enforcement officers searched the basement of a building located on Beaumont Avenue in the Bronx (the “Beaumont Building”) and arrested four individuals.  In the basement of the Beaumont Building, law enforcement officers found hundreds of thousands of pills and over 20 kilograms of narcotics, along with three industrial pill press machines, one disassembled pill press, a kilogram press, and narcotics mixing and repackaging materials including blenders, dyes, jars of calcium citrate (frequently used as a narcotics cutting agent), and industrial-grade gas masks (used for protection when handling narcotic powders intended for pill pressing). 

In or about August 2023, law enforcement officers observed PEREZ MENDEZ appearing to enter or exit the Beaumont Building. 

A photograph of the narcotics recovered from the Beaumont Building is below:

In light of PEREZ MENDEZ’s involvement in the pill mills at the Washington Heights and Beaumont Buildings, law enforcement officers began conducting surveillance of PEREZ MENDEZ.  During the course of that surveillance, law enforcement officers identified a storage room (the “Storage Room”) in the basement of a particular building located on Gerard Avenue in the Bronx (the “Gerard Avenue Building”) that was frequented by PEREZ MENDEZ and PERALTA BAUTISTA.

On April 6, 2024, at approximately 7:15 p.m., law enforcement officers arrested PEREZ MENDEZ as he was exiting the Gerard Avenue Building, only minutes after leaving the Storage Room.  After the arrest of PEREZ MENDEZ, law enforcement officers approached the door to the Storage Room.  A loud pounding sound could be heard emanating from within the Storage Room, which was consistent with the operation of a pill press.

Not long after, the loud pounding sound stopped, and PERALTA BAUTISTA exited the Storage Room.  At the time, PERALTA BAUTISTA’s shirt appears to have had white powder on it.  As PERALTA BAUTISTA exited the Storage Room, he was placed under arrest.

Law enforcement officers then searched the Storage Room, which was used by PEREZ MENDEZ and PERALTA BAUTISTA to store powdered narcotics, combine the narcotics with other fillers, use dyes to color the combined powders, and then use large industrial-scale pill presses to create hundreds of thousands of deadly pills.  Many of the pills appear to have been manufactured to be indistinguishable from prescription medications such as Xanax, Adderall, and OxyContin, though in fact they contain, among other things, varying quantities of fentanyl. 

Among other things, law enforcement officers found two industrial-scale pill presses; approximately 130,000 pills, the vast majority of which field tested positive for the presence of fentanyl (the remainder of which field tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine); approximately three kilograms of a powder in zip lock bags that tested positive for the presence of fentanyl; a bucket containing approximately 20 pounds of powdered narcotics, which field tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine; and approximately 3.5 pounds of suspected crystalized methamphetamine.  The suspected narcotics and pill presses are depicted, in part, below:       

Additionally, law enforcement officers found materials used to mix powdered narcotics with fillers as well as packaging materials used to package narcotics for further distribution.  Those items included mixing bowls, a blender, strainers, dyes, thousands of glassine envelopes, and empty bottles of calcium citrate.  From on or about June 10, 2023, to on or about March 3, 2024, PEREZ MENDEZ and his girlfriend purchased approximately 1,274 bottles of calcium pills from a particular retail chain of consumer products.  This amounts to approximately 356,720 calcium pills.

JUAN MOISES PEREZ MENDEZ, 56, of the Bronx, New York, and ODALIS EUSEBIO PERALTA BAUTISTA, 53, of New York, New York, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute narcotics and one count of narcotics distribution, both of which carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.   

The statutory minimum and maximum sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge. 

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the El Dorado Task Force International Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit, which is comprised of law enforcement officers and investigators from HSI, the DEA, the New York City Police Department, the New York State Police, the U.S. Postal Service, the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, and the New York High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, in connection with this investigation. 

This case is being handled by the Office’s Narcotics Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maggie Lynaugh and Adam Sowlati are in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

Bronx Chamber of Commerce - Spring into Networking with The Bronx Chamber of Commerce

 Thursday, April 18, 2024

6:00pm

Location:

Rosa's at Park

2568 Park Avenue

Bronx, NY 10451

Join The Bronx Chamber of Commerce for a Spring evening of networking. Enjoy bites and beverages as you build your business connections, learn about Bronx Chamber member programs, and how the Chamber advocates for members.

Learn more information by visiting www.bronxchamber.org or contacting events@bronxchamber.org.

Registration is required.

Members: $25.00

Non-Members: $30.00

Register - Click Here

Become a Bronx Chamber Member Today - Click Here

Former Venezuelan General Sentenced To 260 Months In Prison For Providing Material Support To The FARC

 

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CLÍVER ANTONIO ALCALÁ CORDONES was sentenced to 260 months in prison for providing material support, including firearms, to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (the “FARC”).  ALCALÁ CORDONES pled guilty on June 29, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein, who imposed today’s sentence. 

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As a high-ranking member of the Venezuelan military and the Cártel de Los Soles, Clíver Antonio Alcalá Cordones and his co-conspirators sought to weaponize cocaine as they helped the FARC arm its members and ship tons of drugs to the United States.  Alcalá Cordones corrupted the vital institutions of his own country as he helped the FARC flood this country with cocaine — but no longer.  Instead, he will now spend more than two decades in a United States prison.” 

According to court documents and statements made during court proceedings:[1]

ALCALÁ CORDONES, a Venezuelan citizen and a former general in Venezuela’s military, along with other high-ranking Venezuelan officials, acted as leaders and managers of the Cártel de Los Soles, or “Cartel of the Suns.”  ALCALÁ CORDONES and other Cartel members abused the Venezuelan people and corrupted the legitimate institutions of Venezuela — including parts of the military, intelligence apparatus, legislature, and judiciary — to facilitate the importation of tons of cocaine into the United States in partnership with the FARC, a violent organization based in Colombia that was dedicated to the overthrow of the Colombian government and responsible for the production and distribution of the majority of the cocaine that eventually reached the United States.  The Cártel de Los Soles sought not only to enrich its members and enhance their power but also to weaponize cocaine by inflicting the drug’s harmful and addictive effects on users in the United States.

Beginning in or about 2006, ALCALÁ CORDONES took advantage of his position in the Venezuelan military, including his command of thousands of heavily armed military officers, to provide support to the FARC as the FARC distributed tons of U.S.-bound cocaine.  Among other things, ALCALÁ CORDONES (i) prevented FARC members and associates from being arrested by Venezuelan law enforcement or being engaged by the Venezuelan military; (ii) provided protection, including freedom of movement and freedom from interference, for FARC members and associates that the defendant knew trafficked cocaine; and (iii) provided high-powered weapons to the FARC, including directly to high-ranking FARC leaders such as Luciano Marín Arango, a/k/a “Iván Márquez,” and Rodrigo Londoño Echeverri, a/k/a “Timochenko.”  ALCALÁ CORDONES also directly participated in the FARC’s cocaine distribution.  Among other things, ALCALÁ CORDONES participated in meetings with some of the largest drug traffickers in South America, during which they discussed how ALCALÁ CORDONES and other members of the Cártel de Los Soles could assist in their cocaine distribution.  ALCALÁ CORDONES also personally intervened to ensure that large shipments — over thousands of kilograms of cocaine — were not interdicted by law enforcement in Venezuela.  In exchange, ALCALÁ CORDONES received millions of dollars in cocaine-fueled bribes.

ALCALÁ CORDONES, 62, of Caracas, Venezuela, pled guilty to providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, the FARC, and for knowingly receiving and transferring firearms, knowing and having reasonable cause to believe that such firearms would be used to commit a federal crime of terrorism, namely, the provision of material support and resources to the FARC.  In addition to the prison term, ALCALÁ CORDONES was sentenced to three years of supervised release. 

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”) operation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit, Miami Field Division, the OCDETF New York Strike Force, and the U.S. Treasury Department, Office of Foreign Assets Control, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, and the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Judicial Attaché’s Office.

This case is being handled by the Office’s National Security and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas S. Bradley, Kaylan E. Lasky, Kevin T. Sullivan, and Kyle A. Wirshba are in charge of the prosecution.

[1] Communications, conversations, and statements discussed and quoted herein are described in substance and in part.

Comptroller Lander Announces Pre-Litigation Settlement for the Wrongful Conviction of Titus McBride

 

McBride Will Receive $810,000 from New York City

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander announced the $810,000 pre-litigation settlement of a claim filed by Titus McBride for his wrongful conviction. Mr. McBride was arrested in 2014 and convicted in 2017 for a string of newsstand robberies in Manhattan. Mr. McBride served 8.5 years in prison.  

“Titus McBride spent 8.5 years of his life behind bars because of a failure in our justice system,” said Comptroller Brad Lander. “By swiftly concluding this pre-litigation settlement, the City was able to provide a small bit of justice to Mr. McBride and his loved ones.” 

“I applaud the boldness of the early settlement unit and Comptroller Brad Lander to help victims of police misconduct obtain justice quicker than previously possible.  This early settlement process is incredibly beneficial to these victims as it helps them swiftly receive compensation for the injustices they suffered without forcing them to wait a number of years while living and reliving this experience over and over through discovery including depositions,” said Wylie Stecklow, civil rights attorney and Mr. McBride’s counsel. “As long as there is a component of police accountability coupled with these early settlements, this is an incredible program that primarily protects victims of police misconduct while saving the City taxpayer money with the added benefit of lessening the burden on the NYC Law Department. It should be both emulated and applauded.” 

Mr. McBride was convicted despite unreliable witnesses and insufficient evidence. The case relied solely on testimony from New York Police Department (NYPD) officers who identified him based on unclear surveillance images that lacked distinct facial or identifying features. Additionally, the NYPD and District Attorney failed to disclose information about the officers’ extensive disciplinary histories, which included 13 substantiated misconduct allegations via the NYC Civilian Complaint Review Board and the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau. 

Mr. McBride always maintained his innocence and immediately appealed his convictions. In October 2022, the New York Supreme Court, granted Mr. McBride’s application to reverse his conviction. 

Wrongful conviction settlements can be found in the Comptroller’s Annual Claims Report. 

The settlement was led by Justina K. Rivera, General Counsel and Deputy Comptroller for Legal Affairs; Seunghwan Kim, Assistant Comptroller, Bureau of Law and Adjustment; and was brought about by the investigation and negotiation of Director of Litigation Lynell Canagata, and Deputy Director Rohit Mallick.