Judge Robert Kirsch Stops Delays in Moshe Silber’s Trial

A federal judge has grown tired of Moshe Silber’s attempts to push back his sentencing date.

Judge Robert Kirsch set a hearing for March 18 where Silber and his co-conspirator Fred Schulman’s days in prison will be decided.

Silber and Schulman pleaded guilty last summer to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution, but their sentencing date kept getting postponed. Silber’s attorney argued the Department of Justice’s attorneys lied and failed to disclose material to the defense counsel. Silber’s legal counsel recently withdrew those allegations.

As their judgment day dragged on, Silber and Schulman faced new criminal charges related to their ownership of a Pittsburgh area rental property. The new charges violated the terms of Silber’s bail. Kirsch revoked Silber’s bail and Silber was required to turn himself in on Monday.

Silber’s attorney Eric Kanefsky argued once again that more time was needed for his sentencing.

But Kirsch was not persuaded.

“It really is never enough, Mr. Kanefsky,” said Kirsch at a hearing on February 18. “There’s always something you want to bring to the court’s attention, but the end result appears always to be kicking it out.”

Kanefsky sought to push back the sentencing because the rental property at the center of the fraud scheme, the Williamsburg of Cincinnati, is in mid-foreclosure and had recently received an offer. If the sale goes through, the court can determine the lender’s “actual loss,” a crucial element in any decision about sentencing, Kanefsky argued.

Kirsch was not sympathetic to Kanefsky’s arguments.

“I have 100 percent certainty that the end of March will become the end of the end of April, will become July. And there will be one cogent reason after the next from you, most respectfully, to keep kicking the can down the field,” the judge said at the hearing.

Kirsch said there were too many unknowns about the proposed sale. One is whether the sale will actually occur. Another being the length of time the sale will take.

“I accommodated the defense in February with great trepidation that this exact scenario would take place, which is an explanation one after the next to delay, delay, delay,” said Kirsch. “Now I’ve got a defendant that’s incarcerated.”

The judge set March 18 as the date of a hearing. Silber and Schulman both face up to five years in jail.

The charges against Silber and Schulman are part of the Department of Justice’s and Federal Housing Finance Agency’s investigation into commercial mortgage fraud. Silber and Schulman along with their co-conspirator Boruch Drillman showed JLL and Fannie Mae an inflated sale price on the Williamsburg of Cincinnati, allowing the investors to obtain a larger loan.

Silber and Schulman then got in trouble for their alleged mismanagement of a rental property outside of Pittsburgh and 11 other nuisance properties. The Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office leveled multiple felony charges against Silber and Schulman, claiming tenants at Silber’s properties lived in “deplorable conditions.”

Silber, a multifamily landlord based out of Suffern, New York, had a vast portfolio of rental properties across the country. He valued his holdings at $1.3 billion, including a residence in London. On top of real estate, he owned a private jet, and about $2 million in cars and jewelry, according to Silber’s personal financial statements obtained by The Real Deal.

The judge allowed Silber to attend his son’s bar mitzvah last weekend prior to turning himself over to authorities. A source told The Real Deal that the bar mitzvah was a big bash held at the Sleepy Hollow Inn in Tarrytown.

Silber’s attorney did not return a request for comment. Schulman’s attorney also did not return a request for comment. The DOJ declined to comment.