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New York

LES landlord indicted for mortgage fraud

Dean Galasso allegedly lied about rent roll to land $5M loan

43 Essex Street and Dean Galasso (Credit: Google Maps and the NY AG's office)
43 Essex Street and Dean Galasso (Credit: Google Maps and the NY AG's office)

New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman charged a Lower East Side landlord with lying about his rent roll to land a $5 million mortgage.

According to a statement released Thursday, the AG accuses Dean Galasso of submitting forged documents inflating the rental income at the multifamily walkup 43 Essex Street to land an acquisition loan from Investors Bank. He bought the building for $6.9 million in 2014, records show.

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The mortgage fraud charges stem from an investigation into tenant harassment at the 10-unit property. Residents accused Galasso of turning off cooking gas for a year, as well as heat and hot water ahead of a January 2016 snow storm.

“Bad landlords are now on notice: if you attempt to break the law, we will find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law,” Schneiderman said in a statement. [NYP] — Konrad Putzier