|
Investigations
Feds say two lawyers helped conceal Masilotti’s misdeeds
October 31, 2006
By: Rebecca Riddick
The U.S. attorney’s office has identified two veteran West Palm Beach lawyer-lobbyists as playing key roles in alleged criminal schemes by former Palm Beach County Commission chairman Tony Masilotti to enrich himself through secret land deals he supported politically.
In its 35-page information issued Monday, U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta’s office referred by their initials to the two attorneys, Harvey Oyer, a partner at Gunster Yoakley & Stewart in West Palm Beach, and William Boose, a partner at Boose Casey Ciklin Lubitz Martens McBane & O’Connell. Boose Casey serves as bond counsel for the Palm Beach County Commission.
Neither man has been charged for his alleged role in covering up Masilotti’s ownership stake in land to be purchased by the South Florida Water Management District and Martin County.
Oyer drafted documents to intentionally hide Masilotti’s stake in one of the deals, according to the information.
Boose set up a trust to conceal the purchase of land by Masilotti, according to the information.
Oyer was not available for comment. Sara Alsofrom, a Gunster Yoakley spokeswoman, responded to media calls for Oyer. She said her firm is cooperating to every extent possible with the investigation. She declined to answer specific questions about the information.
Boose did not return a call seeking comment.
Masilotti declined to comment.
Masilotti, a real estate agent who served on the County Commission from November 1998 until he resigned in October, faces up to five years in prison and forfeiture of $9.5 million in cash and real estate. He is charged with conspiracy to deprive the public of his “honest services,” abuse the mails and wire communications, and evade income taxes. The investigation was launched after a series of articles earlier this year by the Palm Beach Post.
U.S. Attorney Acosta said at a news conference Monday that the investigation is continuing and his office is considering “whether other charges are appropriate.”
Alicia Valle, a spokeswoman for Acosta’s office in Miami, said she could not comment on whether anyone else would be charged. Masilotti has said he will plead guilty.
Concealment roles
Prosecutors and federal agents said at the news conference Monday that Masilotti, his associates, and their lawyers used a complicated series of maneuvers to conceal Masilotti’s stake in lucrative land deals for which he won political approvals as county commissioner.
 Oyer represented David and Jeffrey Lee, Masilotti’s partners in the alleged illegal land deals, in their joint purchase with the former commissioner of the 3,500-acre Nine Gems tract in Martin County. Of the $7.9 million purchase price for the property, Massilotti contributed $250,000.
Oyer is accused of intentionally hiding Masilotti’s stake in the property.
Boose was hired by Masilotti in 2002 to set up a trust in order to conceal the purchase of land at Nine Gems, according to federal prosecutors. The information also said Boose created a “false and fraudulent billing statement” to hide his agreement to provide free legal services, according to the information.
During that time, Boose was regularly appearing before the Palm Beach County Commission seeking favorable votes on a range of land use issues, according to the information.
The Boose-arranged land trust was named the Crum Trust after Richard Crum, an accountant at Boose’s law firm. The trust named Masilotti’s ex-wife, Susan, as the beneficial owner. Through the trust, Masilotti purchased an additional 150 acres of the Nine Gems tract, paying $367,000.
To hide Masilotti’s involvement, Boose allegedly had Susan Masilotti write the checks for the balance of the monies owed, approximately $98,000.
About eight months after Masilotti purchased the additional Nine Gems tracts, an employee of Martin County, identified in the information as K.L., contacted Boose regarding the desire of Martin County and the Florida Communities Trust to purchase the property.
According to the information, Boose had Richard Crum execute a willingness-to-sell statement without revealing the true owner of the trust. The other land owners did the same.
During a joint meeting of the Palm Beach County Commission and the Martin County Commission in July 2003, Masilotti allegedly used his influence to have K.L. speak of her desire to purchase the Nine Gems property on behalf of Martin County and the Florida Communities Trust. Masilotti also urged K.L. to seek additional funding from the South Florida Water Management District.
More than a month later, Masilotti attended a meeting at the West Palm Beach headquarters of the South Florida Water Management District, where he argued in favor of the district’s purchase of the Nine Gems tract. He did not reveal his financial stake in the property.
Deceptive land swap
In November 2003, the water management district moved forward in its purchase of the property. According to the information, around this time Oyer sent an e-mail to the district stating that the Lee brothers owned the Crum Trust.
Shortly after the e-mail was sent, Boose allegedly contacted Jeffrey Lee to persuade him to buy Susan Masilotti out of the trust to conceal Tony Masilotti’s involvement, according to the information.
The owners of the Nine Gems property also contacted the water management district to inform the district that they would like to retain land that bordered the only paved roadway through the area, according to the information.
Oyer and Boose met, according to the information, to discuss the need to continue hiding Tony Masilotti’s involvement in the deal. The parties allegedly decided to perform a land swap, under which the Lee brothers would get the 150 acres of Crum Trust-owned land, while Tony Masilotti would receive 150 acres of the land retained along the roadway by the brothers.
Oyer allegedly sent a fax to the water management district informing them that the Lee brothers had bought out the Crum Trust.
According to the information, Boose and Oyer worked out the land swap deal, which gave the Lee brothers the option of purchasing back 110 acres. The deal was completed on March 29, 2004.
In April 2005, the Lee brothers exercised their option to buy back the 110 acres, and did so for $1.7 million.
This past April, Boose allegedly had the remaining 40 acres transferred to Susan Masilotti. In June 2006, he billed her for 9.3 hours of legal services, allegedly to hide his having provided free counsel for almost four years to her ex-husband.
Rebecca Riddick can be reached ator at (561) 820-2065.
Tony Masilotti photo by Fred Mullane
|
