Jona Rechnitz, the key witness in the federal government’s probe of corruption at the New York Police Department, is at risk of losing a block-long retail-and-office building he owns in Borough Park.
Rechnitz’s JSR Capital is in default on a $15 million loan the investor landed when he purchased the 32,000-square-foot Solomon Plaza at 5002 13th Avenue in April 2015 for $25 million, court records show.
Signature Bank and RCG Longview provided JSR the debt, which had a maturity date of May 1, 2017. But JSR defaulted when the note came due, and an entity named 5002 Holdings LLC acquired the note. Earlier this week, 5002 Holdings filed a motion in Brooklyn State Supreme Court to foreclose on the property.
A representative for JSR declined to comment. The LLC holding the note is registered to the law firm Fink & Zelmanovitz in Marine Park. A representative for the law firm declined to comment.
In a somewhat aggressive move for a foreclosure proceeding, 5002 Holdings has asked the court to order JSR tenants to stop paying rent to the landlord, and make payments directly to the lender.
Rechnitz is a key witness in multiple investigations of possible corruption at the NYPD. In March, President Trump’s newly appointed district attorney for Manhattan announced he would not bring charges against Mayor Bill de Blasio over possible pay-to-play schemes, though noted the mayor’s fundraising efforts violated the spirit of the law.