New York demands eXp investigate assault, misconduct claims

New York’s fiscal boss is calling for a formal probe into the disturbing allegations against eXp Realty and some of its former top producers. 

State comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is demanding an independent investigation by the brokerage into the sexual harassment and assault allegations dogging eXp, the New York Times reported. The state’s interest in eXp is tied to a pension fund for which DiNapoli is the trustee; New York State Common Retirement Fund’s most recent SEC filing showed it held 27,000 shares of eXp’s parent company.

“We found the allegations very concerning and as a shareholder, we are asking questions,” DiNapoli said. A spokesperson for eXp said the company has already launched an independent investigation.

As the state’s chief fiscal officer, the state comptroller occasionally sends out letters after damning allegations against a company that can serve as the first step for legal action against a company. In recent years, DiNapoli fired off similar letters to Tesla, Starbucks and Activision Blizzard. 

A former eXp agent based in Reno earlier this month filed a lawsuit against the brokerage and a former team leader, accusing him of sexual harassment and retaliation. 

That was the third lawsuit filed against eXp and the second that claimed top agents Michael Bjorkman and David Golden drugged and sexually assaulted female colleagues. The California-based agents, who were previously accused of sexual misconduct in a lawsuit filed last year, have denied accusations against them and are no longer with eXp.

CEO Glenn Sanford hasn’t commented publicly on the ongoing litigation.

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DiNapoli cited a New York Times report published in December in his demand for an independent investigation. The outlet reported that in April 2022, a female consultant for the brokerage wrote to the company’s board of directors asking them to take action on behalf of the allegations, but was ignored.

The Times’ reporting also depicted a female broker who filed an ethics complaint against her supervisor after he solicited her for photos of her watching pornography and a broker who filed a police report saying she was raped by a photographer working as a vendor at eXp’s Shareholder Summit.

— Holden Walter-Warner