Abraham Fruchthandler’s son was hit with a restraining order following an alleged domestic dispute at his Midwood mansion last year.
Ephraim Fruchthandler, 52, kicked his wife of 30 years, Leah Fruchthandler, out of their “luxurious, newly renovated 11-bedroom marital residence” following an argument last Passover, a judge in Brooklyn Family Court ruled, according to the New York Post.
When she returned to the home in August 2016, the two got into another fight, and an outdoor surveillance camera caught Leah “gesticulating and speaking emphatically in [her] husband’s face” before Ephraim “lunges toward [his] wife and appears to yell in her face, frightening her enough to make her take a few steps backwards,” the court ruling found.
They got into another argument a few days later, which ended with Ephraim throwing a queen-size mattress against his wife, and then used it to shove her out of the bedroom, the judge wrote.
Leah has also filed for divorce, claiming she found “sexually explicit chatting and encounter” apps on his phone including Just Hook Up and Zoosk.
Ephraim’s attorney told the Post that his client denies acting in a violent manner toward his wife and said they plan to appeal the restraining order. Leah’s lawyer did not return the newspaper’s request for comment.
The Fruchthandler family oversees 25 million square feet of commercial space and 4,000 residential units. It’s an investor in the Woolworth Building and Industry City.
The family recently partnered with former Extell Development acquisitions head Dov Hertz to buy an eight-building portfolio from EJ Realty for $141.5 million and split up the properties. The Fruchthandlers and Hertz’s DH Property held on three buildings in Brooklyn at 130 East 18th Street, 625 Marlborough Road and 105-131 East 86th Street. [NYP] – Rich Bockmann