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Friday, March 29, 2024

Foreclosure Suit Filed on Rabbi Pinto’s Property

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Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto (born September 27, 1973) is an Israeli Orthodox rabbi who leads a global ministry called Mosdot Shuva Israel. (Photo Credit: Wikipedia)
The building located at 122 East 58th Street in Midtown Manhattan. (Photo Credit: Wikimapia)

The non-profit organization Mosdot Shuva Israel, led by Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto, owns the property at 122 East 58th Street for which it is being sued for foreclosure on its $20 million in loans, by the private Manhattan-based equity firm, Corigin Real Estate Group.

Filed in Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday, January 8, the complaint asserts that on March 17 the charity defaulted on loans, including a $15 million note as well as a $5 million note that was first borrowed in 2009 from Signature Bank and later extended.

The firm Corigin, led by Ryan Freedman, former chairman of development firm Coalco New York, bought the notes from Signature on March 13.

Several members of the charity’s board of directors are named in the lawsuit as defendants, maintaining that they gave guarantees to repay the loans. Among the defendants are Keller Williams’ brokers Ilan Bracha and Haim Binstock, as well as executives Ben Zion Suky and Yosi Zaga of Livorno Properties. Investor Haim Revah and Roxy Deli’s Joseph Ben Moha were named as guarantors.

On the $15 million note, the suit alleges that $14.3 million is owed, and on the $5 million note, the suit claims a balance of $3 million is owed.

The Real Deal was told by Suky, that investors made an agreement to extend the loan with Signature Bank. He said that a total of $22.3 million was borrowed, and $5 million of it was already paid back, therefore the remaining loan balance is only $17.3 million.

In an interview Suky said, “They agreed to extend the loan and reduce the interest on the loan.” According to TRD, he said Signature Bank notified them the day before the loan was sold, but he had no knowledge of who precisely purchased it.

“We are thinking about what will be our next step on Signature Bank,” he said. “We have a bank that we’re going to refinance with, in the next few days.”

In 2009, Mosdot \purchased the property for $28.5 million, with the intentions of using the space for a school, synagogue and administrative offices.

The case of foreclosure is just the most recent in a string of legal battles involving Rabbi Pinto. In Israel, the spiritual leader is being investigated for the alleged attempted bribing of one or more police officials.

According to TRD, Tomer Shohat, a New York hedge fund manager that is a competitor of Suky, claimed in a December civil suit that Rabbi Pinto iallegedly encouraged New York police detective, Eric Patino, to arrest Shohat for grand larceny in February 2013. Patino is also a broker for Azad Property Group. Shohat provided documentation showing that the charges against him were dismissed in April 2013.

According to another lawsuit filed in February by Shohat in Manhattan Supreme Court, Suky misappropriated funds at the Metro Apartments at 440 West 41st Street, where both were investors.

Zaga, Moha and Bracha were not available for comment immediately. Patino said the matter was still being investigated by the police, and declined to comment.

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