Former Latitude Five25 owner takes plea agreement in federal wire fraud case

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The former owner of an apartment complex that was the subject of a Christmas day evacuation in 2022 has taken a plea agreement and will admit to wire fraud.

In a federal court in New Jersey, Boruch Drillman accepted a guilty plea to a single count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution. He was the owner of Latitude Five25, a twin-tower complex on Sawyer Boulevard east of Downtown that came under scrutiny for bedbugs, broken elevators, asbestos, and burst pipes as well as being deemed unsafe to live in. After the evacuation, the city moved to let a new owner take over.

The guilty plea will result in a statutory maximum prison sentence of five years, a statutory maximum fine of $250,000 and other penalties.

Drillman pleaded guilty after a court case revealed he had knowingly and willingly conspired to commit wire fraud against multiple organizations. The defrauded were two unnamed financial institutions and the Federal National Mortgage Association, referred to as "Fannie Mae" during the court case. Drillman was accused of using these organizations to obtain money and property by false and fraudulent means.

Part of the conspiracy was a proposed "flip" transaction, in which Drillman and his conspirators used a related party to purchase a Michigan technology park for over $42 million before selling it to him for $70 million. One of the financial institutions loaned a group managed by Drillman $45 million. During this transaction, the conspirators misrepresented that the loan was about 65% of the $70 million purchase.

To conceal the actual closing price, members of the conspiracy arranged two closings. One of these was for the actual price and the other for the inflated price. The sale was completed in September 2020.

Court documents show that this was not the only "flip" transaction scam that Drillman participated in, revealing a second part of the conspiracy involving the Williamsburg of Cincinnati property.

Upon conviction, federal agents will seek forfeiture of any and all property that was derived from proceeds traceable to the offense.

After Drillman came under fire for his management of apartment complex Latitude Five25 in 2022, he was fined $4.3 million and forced to give up the property. Residents were entitled to $265,000 worth of money and furniture. A bankruptcy claim made by Paxe Latitude was dismissed earlier this year.