Oren and Alon Alexander could have a joint trial on state rape charges, alongside family friend Ohad Fisherman, as early as May.
Oren, a former top real estate broker, was charged late last year in three alleged instances of sexual assault, while his twin Alon and Fisherman, also a broker, each face one count of sexual battery. Fisherman was accused of helping the brothers rape a woman in 2016.
On Thursday, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Lody Jean took up motions filed by the defendants’ attorneys in the charges brought by the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office in December. Fisherman was not present in court.
The state charges are separate from the federal sex trafficking case brought by the Southern District of New York. That trial is set for January 2026. The federal indictment includes Oren, Alon and their older brother Tal. Prosecutors said earlier this year they had spoken to about 60 victims and plan to file a superseding indictment. If convicted, they face potential sentences in prison of 15 years to life.
The three brothers pleaded not guilty in the case and have denied all allegations.
All charges were announced in December at joint press conferences in New York and Miami.
Jean granted some of the defendants’ motions, ordering state prosecutors to request the federal government turn over arrest warrants, affidavits and an inventory of what they seized when the brothers were arrested on Dec. 11.
Assistant State Attorney Natalie Snyder said she would like to try the Alexanders and Fisherman together, and suggested Oren and Alon may be transported back for their trial later this year via a writ.
State prosecutors will also ask federal authorities to turn over a “data dump” from Oren and Alon’s devices, such as cellphones, that would show communications between an alleged victim and the defendants between July 2016 and January 2017, as requested by the defense.
“At this point we have nothing but the victim’s statement, so we want to see whether there’s information that corroborates or contradicts what she said,” Ohad’s attorney, Jeffrey Sloman, told reporters after Thursday’s hearing.
The defense attorneys accused the law firm Morgan & Morgan of coordinating with state prosecutors in preparing a civil lawsuit claiming an attack by Oren and Alon, and asked the judge to order prosecutors to turn over statements made by the alleged victim, her sisters and a friend. The judge did not grant this motion, but attorneys for the defendants will likely subpoena Morgan & Morgan.
Snyder told the judge that she has no control over what the federal government will turn over, and that while the two jurisdictions worked together to coordinate the arrests in December, the investigations have been separate.
“It’s a different case,” Snyder said. “They’re trying to back-door getting things in the federal case.”
Attorney Edward O’Donnell, who is representing Oren in this case, said after the hearing that he believes the evidence they’re seeking will prove the accusers have not been truthful. The state’s charges are based on accounts from three women whose identities have been withheld.
The judge gave prosecutors 10 days to get that evidence from the FBI.
The Alexanders are also at the center of 17 civil lawsuits alleging one or more of them assaulted or raped women.
Read more
Residential
National
Eleven more women accuse Alexander brothers of sexual assault
Residential
National
What we know about Ohad Fisherman, the alleged accomplice to the Alexander brothers