Buyers who lost deposits on Coconut Grove homes settle case

The homebuyers who allege they were conned by developer Doug Cox in Coconut Grove agreed to quitclaim deeds, giving up claims of ownership to the properties on which they had made deposits years ago. 

Thirty-two parties who were owed $34 million agreed to sign quitclaim deeds, the Miami Herald reported. 

Cox and his wife and business partner, Nicole Pearl, allegedly crafted a scheme where they sold homes and townhomes in Coconut Grove to multiple buyers while lying to lenders and investors, according to lawsuits filed in recent years. The properties involved in the lawsuits are scattered throughout Coconut Grove, on Coconut Avenue, Virginia Street and elsewhere. 

Retired Miami-Dade Judge Alan Fine is the receiver and Michael Hanzman, the former Miami-Dade judge who oversaw the Surfside collapse litigation, mediated the settlement. 

Fine called the alleged fraud “remarkable and stunning.” 

One buyer, investment banker Michael Coyne and his wife Oksana, refused to sign the settlement. Coyne said Fine gave “priority to predatory lenders,” acted like a real estate agent and “treated this like a bankruptcy, which it is not.” 

Some of the homes have building code issues that still prevent the city from issuing certificates of occupancy, keeping people from being able to live in the properties. Cox hasn’t been charged with a crime tied to the alleged fraud.

Fine hired Cox’s real estate agent, Randi Connell, who is on Riley Smith’s team at Compass, to sell the homes. Broker, investor and developer Vivian Dimon was also hired by Fine to obtain certificates of occupancy and market the homes for sale. She’s earned more than $575,000 from the receivership.

Kevin Ware, one of the buyers who put down more than $430,000 for a $1.7 million in townhouse, told the Herald that “We lost, and the wrong people won.” 

At one point, billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin tried to buy the homes in a bulk sale, but that fell through. 

Chris Paciello, an ex-Mafia associate turned Miami Beach nightclub operator who is now a real estate investor, is among the buyers who lost money. Paciello, owner of Anatomy Fitness, put down $2.3 million for five properties. Paciello’s business partner, Mio Danilovic, alleges he was conned out of $1.2 million investing in Cox’s properties. Danilovic is a vice president of operations for Coconut Grove-based SBE. 

— Katherine Kallergis