Phony Real Estate Broker Who Opened & Operated Fraudulent Harlem Brokerage Office Gets 3-6 Years Prison Time For Duping Prospective Buyers Out Of $250K In Purchase Deposits

In New York City, the New York Post reports:

• A phony real-estate broker was shamed [] by a Harlem imam for stealing $50,000 that it took his congregants the past 30 years to raise, as the conman was sentenced to 3-to-6 years behind bars.
  
  Imam Al-Hajj Talib ‘Abdur-Rashid, from the Mosque of Islamic Brotherhood on W. 113th St., recalled how scammer Dan Stern “exploited our dream” of buying a new church when he conned them out of their money.
  
  “We collected and saved the money of mostly poor people while praying for the opportunity of growth and expansion,” ‘Abdur-Rashid said in Manhattan Supreme Court.
  
  In all, Stern, 52, swiped $250,000 from victims he duped into believing he was an authentic real-estate agent or lawyer between 2014 and 2015.
  
  He pulled off the scam by opening up Harlem Village Reality on East 126th Street and advertising properties for sale — unbeknownst to the true owners and without their permission.
  
  The properties included two churches and several buildings – located at 41 West 124th Street, 36 West 128th Street, 52-54 East 126th Street, 342 West 123rd Street and 175 West 126th Street – that were facing foreclosure or were badly in need of repairs.
  
  Stern convinced interested buyers to hand over down payment checks, which he then pocketed.

For the story, see Fake real-estate agent gets jail for swindling imam out of $50K.

For the Manhattan District Attorney press release, see Phony Real Estate Agent Sentenced to 3-to-6 Years in Prison for Stealing $250,000 in Down Payments through Harlem Property Scam.