Picture Illustration of Nir Mier (Getty, iStock/Illustration by Kevin Rebong for The Actual Deal)
Israeli auto magnate Yoav Harlap notched a victory final April when a choose dominated his firm may go after former HFZ Capital Group principal Nir Meir for $19 million on a delinquent mortgage.
However practically a yr later, Harlap’s firm says Meir has not paid a dime of that judgment, as a substitute racking up lavish private expenditures and concealing funds in a recreation of “catch me in the event you can.”
Harlap’s YH Lex Estates claims that Meir hid his property in shell firms whereas dwelling along with his spouse in a $150,000 a month rental in Miami Seaside, splurging on advantageous wine and chartering personal jets and yachts.
Meir’s lawyer, Larry Hutcher of Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, disputes that.
“We problem these allegations and proceed to disclaim them and in the end they are going to be resolved in a courtroom,” mentioned Hutcher.
However statements for a JPMorgan Chase checking account of Ermitage One, an organization managed by Meir and owned by his spouse, Ranee Bartolacci, present the couple has been dwelling massive regardless of lawsuits from buyers, allegations of fraud by Meir’s former companion and the collapse of his former agency, HFZ.
The financial institution statements, in courtroom filings by Harlap’s lawyer, present that between April and October 2021, Ermitage One spent a whole bunch of hundreds of {dollars} on Apollo Jets and Apollo Yachts, and over $1.5 million on gold bullions and cash. Different bills embody $77,225 at high-end Miami furnishings retailer Minotti.
The statements additionally present $250,000 transferred to white-shoe regulation agency Quinn Emanuel and $261,000 wired to a Qatari nationwide, Ahmad Yousuf Kamal.
Meir’s authorized group mentioned the cash was Meir’s spouse’s and the spending doesn’t point out wrongdoing.
“Nir had a wholesome way of life when he was at HFZ, nothing to apologize for,” mentioned Hutcher, Meir’s lawyer. “He was doing nicely, and his spouse has elected to proceed to reside a life-style.”
She contends the cash is hers to spend as she needs, in accordance with Hutcher, who accused The Actual Deal of reporting on the allegations “to learn a creditor.”
“You have to be cautious as to what you report,” he warned.
Harlap’s lawyer, Mark Hatch-Miller of Susman Godfrey, declined to remark, however his courtroom filings disputed Meir’s arguments.
“YH fairly infers that Ermitage was created to function the first pipeline for the concealment and use of the fraudulently transferred funds,” Hatch-Miller wrote.
Hatch-Miller claims that the cash really got here from the $43 million sale of Meir’s Hamptons mansion to New England Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft final yr and was to pay the judgment however was diverted to Meir’s spouse and her enterprise.
The case grew to become extra convoluted when Meir’s attorneys argued that Bartolacci, not Meir, owned the corporate that managed the home. That they had beforehand claimed that Meir was the proprietor.
In February, YH Lex Estates filed a separate lawsuit towards Meir, Bartolacci and Ermitage One in search of to take over a fleet of luxurious autos that Harlap alleges is Meir’s.
The lender’s swimsuit claims Ermitage transferred no less than $3.7 million again to Meir after April 2021 and that some cash has gone to Utilized Financial institution, Delaware establishment that gives asset safety.
Meir and Bartolacci tried to secretly public sale their luxurious automobiles via eBay and automotive brokers in New Jersey and California to “dissipate their property,” the lawsuit prices. The autos embody a 2010 convertible Aston Martin, a 2001 Mercedes-Benz G500 Cabriolet, a 2018 Porsche GT2, a 2019 Porsche 911 and a 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLS63 AMG.
Meir’s attorneys deny the allegations. Meir claimed in an affidavit that most of the automobiles had been owned by Bartolacci or Ermitage.
Harlap might produce other alternatives to recoup what YH Lex Estates is owed. A New York appellate courtroom not too long ago granted it a abstract judgment of greater than $18 million towards HFZ and its principal, Ziel Feldman — Meir’s former enterprise companion. The ruling permits YH Lex Estates to go after each Feldman and HFZ for the judgment, along with Meir.
HFZ Capital was as soon as among the many most lively luxurious apartment builders in New York, backed partially by Beny Steinmetz, an Israeli diamond magnate who was not too long ago convicted of bribery in Romania and Switzerland.
As HFZ grew to become besieged by collectors, Meir left the agency in December 2020. On the time, his spokesperson, Matthew Hiltzik, mentioned Meir was stepping down from operating the HFZ’s day-to-day operations however “remained a vested companion.” Nevertheless, Meir swore in an affidavit submitted this week that he was terminated with out warning by HFZ.
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The put up Nir Meir lives excessive life as he geese HFZ’s collectors: lawsuit appeared first on The Actual Deal Nationwide.
