NJ Realtor Pleads Guilty To Money Laundering

In answering government questions during his plea, he implicated Moshe "Michael" Altman, 39, of Monsey, N.Y., saying they conspired together to "wash" dirty money through Gmach Shefa Chaim, which was based out of Altman's Union City real estate office.

Union City realtor pleads guilty to money laundering in massive N.J. corruption scandal
By Melissa Hayes/The Jersey Journal • NJ.com

Government informant Solomon Dwek's undercover work has led to another guilty plea in the massive New Jersey corruption scandal.

Izhak Friedlander, a Union City real estate investor charged in the massive New Jersey corruption scandal, pleaded guilty this afternoon to money laundering conspiracy.

Friedlander, 42, admitted before U.S. District Judge Jose Linares in Newark that he passed $175,000 from government informant Solomon Dwek through a charity in order to clean it for him. The funds were to be donated to Union City officials in exchange for helping Dwek secure development approvals.

In answering government questions during his plea, he implicated Moshe "Michael" Altman, 39, of Monsey, N.Y., saying they conspired together to "wash" dirty money through Gmach Shefa Chaim, which was based out of Altman's Union City real estate office.

The indictment against Altman alleges he and co-conspirators Friedlander and Shimon Haber of Brooklyn laundered a total of $668,000 from February 2007 to July 2009. Haber pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge against him in January and Linares is scheduled to sentence him May 25.

They engaged in some 15 separate money laundering transactions in which they laundered checks they understood to be proceeds of crime, by returning approximately $547,350 in cash to Dwek, the indictment alleges.

Altman allegedly collected a 15 percent fee for himself and his co-conspirators, the indictment says.

Dwek was at the center of a two-pronged government sting that led to the arrests of scores of politicians and rabbis in New Jersey and New York.

Friedlander is the 13th person to plead guilty in the scandal. The only person who has so far gone to trial, former Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, was convicted on two of six counts and vows to appeal.

When sentenced July 14, Friedlander faces a minimum of 24 to 30 months in prison.

Linares told him in court that the maximum statutory penalty for the crimes he committed is 20 years in prison and a fine o $250,000 or double the gross amount gained or lost.

He and his attorney declined to comment after the hearing.

[Hat Tip: CS.]