Pinnacle tenants looking to “send a message” with racketeering suit

After receiving the go-ahead in federal district court on a class-action suit against controversial landlord Pinnacle Group NY and its CEO, Joel Wiener, five West Harlem tenants are reaching out to fellow rent-regulated residents for evidence to help build their case. In a statement released today, plaintiff Andres Mares-Muro said the suit, which accuses the defendants of racketeering by harassing tenants and evading New York’s rent-regulation laws, “sends a message to flippers and speculators whose ‘business plan’ is to harass us and drive us out of our apartments.” The plaintiffs, Borough President Scott Stringer, and advocacy group Buyers and Renters United to Save Harlem, are slated to hold a meeting for potential plaintiffs May 23. TRD