West Long Branch, NJ - Dwek's Woes Could Have Wide Impact
West Long Branch, NJ - When he was buying real estate at the Shore "with a passionate fervor," Solomon Dwek would drive around Ocean Township in his black Lexus making deals on his mobile phone. "He was constantly buying properties," said Christopher P. Siciliano, an Ocean Township councilman and township Realtor. "(Real estate) agents were literally running to Solomon."
But in the past three weeks, the buying has ceased, the fervor has died, the agents have stopped calling and the black Lexus carrying a wheeling-and-dealing Dwek is nowhere in sight.
In its place are irate investors, embarrassed community members, angry home builders and a criminal complaint by PNC Bank of attempting to defraud it of $50 million.
And there is also fear that the potential financial collapse of Dwek's multimillion-dollar real estate empire will create wide economic tremors that spread from individual homeowners to multinational banks. "There is absolutely no reason to panic," Superior Court Judge Alexander D. Lehrer assured a room packed with lawyers representing anxious investors Friday. "Hopefully, everybody will be paid."
But how long it will take to unravel Dwek's extensive network of deals, and where the investigation of his empire will lead remains unknown.
But in the past three weeks, the buying has ceased, the fervor has died, the agents have stopped calling and the black Lexus carrying a wheeling-and-dealing Dwek is nowhere in sight.
In its place are irate investors, embarrassed community members, angry home builders and a criminal complaint by PNC Bank of attempting to defraud it of $50 million.
And there is also fear that the potential financial collapse of Dwek's multimillion-dollar real estate empire will create wide economic tremors that spread from individual homeowners to multinational banks. "There is absolutely no reason to panic," Superior Court Judge Alexander D. Lehrer assured a room packed with lawyers representing anxious investors Friday. "Hopefully, everybody will be paid."
But how long it will take to unravel Dwek's extensive network of deals, and where the investigation of his empire will lead remains unknown.
posted by VOS IZ NEIAS @ 5/14/2006 12:52:00 PM
2 Comments:
At 12:55 PM,
Anonymous said…
Superior Court Judge Alexander D. Lehrer used the largest county courtroom Friday for the Solomon Dwek case, but even that was not big enough. Many had to stand in the hallway beyond the open doorway.
With more than 100 lawyers, bankers, real estate developers, investors and former partners in the court, when Lehrer took the bench at 11:30 a.m., he said jokingly: "This is the state bar convention."
The lawyers, some sporting red power ties and jockeying for the best position to be heard, had to line up as if they were waiting to see a concert. They had to sign their names to a list and deposit their business cards in a box, which was later accidentally knocked over.
Dennis Kearney, the PNC Bank lawyer who had filed for the hearing May 3, was back. At that time he asked Lehrer to freeze Dwek's assets after the 33-year-old Ocean Township man deposited what PNC Bank said was a phony $25 million check. Dwek then wired most of that money out to pay off several debts before the bank figured out what happened and found itself out of $20 million, according to the FBI.
Dwek, who is charged with federal bank fraud and attempted fraud, did not appear for this civil court hearing before Lehrer.
On Friday, Kearney was no longer alone.
He stood against a courtroom wall with his PNC representatives as the rows of seats filled up. But as lawyer after lawyer showed up, one quickly got an idea of the layers, complexities and the far reach of Dwek's real estate empire. Even Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis Valentin watched from the doorway.
Dwek's lawyer, Robert A. Weir Jr., of Red Bank literally walked into the courtroom at the last moment.
"Glad you called this meeting," Weir joked, walking past more than 100 people.
Later, Weir said his client was going to come up with the funds to make things right. Some who know Dwek and his family said they wanted to believe that. They called reporters anxious for news and asked "Did he make everything good yet?"
The one message Lehrer wanted to clearly deliver was that order must replace the fiscal chaos. The judge appointed a Monmouth County lawyer, Donald Lomurro, to be his fiscal agent to sort out all the claims.
At 12:57 PM,
Anonymous said…
Several residents say they are hopeful that the arrest of local real estate mogul Solomon Dwek may slow a growing trend of converting single-family homes into rental properties.
Many of Dwek's properties were being rented to local college students or summer visitors, say homeowners who want the community to remain family-oriented.
Dwek had been considered a top buyer of homes, buying many at above-market prices with cash and closing quickly, according to local real estate agents and residents. His buying spree came to an end May 3 when a Superior Court judge froze his assets after Dwek was accused of bouncing a $25 million check at PNC Bank.
He was charged by the FBI Thursday with attempting to defraud the bank of $50 million.
Dorothy Goodrich, 48, and others in the township complained Friday about the condition of rented houses in their neighborhoods. In some cases, grass is not regularly mowed. Garbage piles up. Painting and other maintenance is left undone. Parking spots are hard to come by. Loud parties are held at night, they say.
"Oakhurst (a section of the township) is not the place it used to be 20, 30, 40 years ago. There are people (like Dwek) who want to use the housing stock as investments," said Goodrich, a magazine editor. "It's a destabilizing transformation of Oakhurst. I don't think it's good for the quality of life."
Goodrich said she knew of families who wanted to buy homes in Ocean but lost out to Dwek's offers.
"You might be interested in that house, but you're competing against someone who the Realtors favor and who has cash," she said. "The sellers go for the cash."
Ocean residents have pressed the Township Council to pass rental ordinances that would restrict rental of homes to one new lease a year in residential communities. A homeowners group attended Wednesday's council meeting to ask for action.
Most of the council members demurred. Councilman Christopher P. Siciliano said he supports such an ordinance, but added that he did not believe Dwek was a problem landlord. He said the township has several other landlords who have neglected their properties.
"Solomon Dwek has been going about his business," Siciliano said. "We haven't had many complaints, or not nearly as many complaints as he has properties."
Dwek or corporations that use his business address own 33 homes worth about $7 million in the township, according to property records.
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