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A Brooklyn judge illegally moonlighting as an escrow lawyer helped defraud more than $11 million from investors and a major bank, lawsuits claim — then resigned when a watchdog began investigating.
Judge Edward Harold King, 71, is named as a defendant in a slew of lawsuits alleging he helped swipe the dough alongside a rotating cast of characters involved in a case with nearly identical claims — including former county party boss Frank Seddio, who wields huge influence over the judicial nominee process,
King’s resignation was announced Friday by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, which said the judge had been under investigation for the fraud accusations as well as allegedly practicing law as a sitting judge, which is not allowed.
Rather than participate in the investigation, King resigned from the bench and agreed to never serve as a judge again — killing the probe.
No criminal investigation has been announced in connection to the allegations, but the SCJC has made referrals on its case to law enforcement in the past. The panel declined to comment further to The Post.
King was appointed to the bench in 2024. He did not reply to a Post request for comment.
“On or off the bench, a judge must respect and comply with the law and promote public confidence in the integrity of the judiciary,” said Robert Tembeckjian, head of the SCJC.
“The alarming allegations of financial impropriety against Judge King were so egregious as to warrant his permanent departure from the bench.”
King improperly served as an escrow agent while a full-time judge and “improperly” received escrow funds, refused to return the funds as required and transferred the funds to “unauthorized third parties,” the SCJC wrote of the allegations.
The claims mirror those in several lawsuits still facing King in state and federal court alleging he played a role in mishandling $11.8 million, accusing him and others of fraud, theft and racketeering.
In one lawsuit, a Nassau county investor claims his efforts to have $7 million of his funds returned were denied and that the original escrow agent had transferred the funds to King, who then sent the money to another lawyer, Mark David Graubard.
Graubard was nearly arrested earlier this month for failing to produce bank records in another lawsuit alleging escrow fraud.
Despite some money being returned to the Nassau investor, $1.8 million remains missing, the lawsuit claims, which seeks triple damages of $21 million.
“I could not understand how all of this has been happening — judges and lawyers are acting as if the law doesn’t apply,” said the investor’s lawyer, Ken Glassman.
“It’s like these guys are like — as they used to say about John Gotti — the Teflon rip-off. Nothing sticks to them”
Another Nassau County lawsuit accuses King, plus Brooklyn reality investor Sam Sprei and Lakewood, NJ, resident Jonathan Rubin, of refusing to return $5 million supposedly held in escrow, and alleges they were operating a racketeering enterprise.
“As a result of the scheme, [victims] have lost tens of millions of dollars in funds which they placed into escrow and which the Defendants refuse to return to them,” the suit said.
Another lawsuit filed in federal court by TD Bank claims that King overdrew and failed to replenish his account by $1.9 million last February — an amount that would have been even higher if an $850,000 wire transfer to Sprei a day earlier hadn’t been cancelled.
The Post has reported extensively on one case accusing Seddio, Sprei, Graubard and Rubin of participating in or aiding a nearly identical $2 million escrow fraud scheme.
All have denied wrongdoing, with a rep for Seddio claiming he is “a target because of his high-profile standing in the community and his political leadership.”
English (US)