Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez (left) is suing the attorney for the theft of the deeds of 10 Pleasant Place in Ocean Hill, 1429 East 100th Street in Canarsie and 1100 Sutter Avenue in New York in the East. (Getty; Google Maps)
An unstoppable lawyer who has spent the past decade playing cat and mouse with prosecutors in a robbery investigation has been indicted for the third time in six years in the Fraud of homeowners.
Sanford Solny was charged Wednesday by Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez with possession of stolen property, grand larceny and conspiracy to defraud. This case involves the theft of four houses from which Solny is alleged to have reaped about $2.3 million.
The program began in October 2012, a few months after the one-time attorney lost his license for stealing $600,000 from his uncle before he died, the New York Daily News reported.
Between that fall and December 2022, prosecutors allege, Solny defrauded four Brooklyn homeowners facing foreclosure into returning documents to 1247 Albany Avenue. in East Flatbush, 10 Pleasant Place in Ocean Hill, 1429 East 100th Street in Canarsie and 1100 Sutter Avenue in East New. York.
Solny often lures home owners by offering to arrange a short sale, where people in financial trouble sell their home under terms approved by the team. Borrowing money for less than the amount owed on the mortgage. In exchange, the lender waives the foreclosure process and forgives the balance of the mortgage.
But after the short sale, Solny’s target will emerge still carrying debt.
In the case of the house in East Flatbush, for example, the owner’s sister signed the sale, but the property had a reverse mortgage and additional debt, the New York Times reported.
The deal was closed for $35,000 but the sister said she only received $5,000 and the debt was not paid.
In other cases, Solny will tell homeowners that the lenders want them to vacate the property for the short sale. They will leave, and he will give the document to himself and begin to collect the list of current residents or those he has brought.
When the fraudsters asked what was going on with the sale, he told them that negotiations were pending.
In all, Solny received nearly $64,000 in rent he did not own, according to the Brooklyn DA.
The sentence came after Solny was charged with theft-related crimes in Queens in 2016 and in Brooklyn in 2020, the New York Times reported.
Steal documents, this he has no law of his own, is notoriously difficult to prosecute. Intent is required and perpetrators often sign legal documents, allowing perpetrators to organize legal process to do business.
Solny was able to avoid prison, despite the previous charges. He was sentenced to 5 years in Queens after pleading guilty to the charge of illegal possession. As of July, no decision has been reached in his first case in Brooklyn.
In the latest issue, on March 22 Solny will appear in court.