Luxury real estate brokers charged in federal indictment with sex trafficking in NYC

NEW YORK (AP) — Two luxury real estate brokers and their brother have been charged with luring, drugging and violently raping dozens of women over more than a decade, according to a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday in Manhattan.

State charges were also filed Wednesday in Florida against two of the brothers and a third man stemming from three alleged sexual assaults.

Federal prosecutors allege in the New York indictment that Oren and Tal Alexander, known for brokering deals on high-end properties in New York City and Miami, and sibling Alon Alexander used their wealth and influence to take advantage of women from at least 2010 to 2021.

The brothers, who all reside in Miami, used “deception, fraud, and coercion” to entice victims to travel with them or attend parties or events, often covering flights, hotels and other expenses, according to the indictment. They also at times used the promise of a romantic relationship, it said.

The women were then drugged and raped by one or more of the brothers, as well as other men, before being sent away with concert tickets and other luxuries.

“This conduct was heinous,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said at a news conference in Manhattan.

The brothers typically met their victims on dating apps, through social events and at bars and nightclubs, but they also used party promoters to “source” women, according to Williams.

He added that the women were often provided drugs, including cocaine, psychedelic mushrooms and GHB. The brothers even surreptitiously drugged some of the women’s drinks, leaving them physically impaired and unable to fight back or escape from the sexual assaults, prosecutors said in their indictment.

"In some instances, the defendants physically restrained and held down their victims during the rapes and sexual assaults and ignored screams and explicit requests to stop,'' the indictment said.

In the Florida cases, state prosecutors described one incident in December 2016 as a “gang rape” of a woman who said she was invited to a barbecue at Alon Alexander’s Miami Beach apartment only to discover no one there, save Alon, his brother Oren and another relative, Ohad Fisherman, who remains at large.

The woman, who is not named, said she was led into a bedroom where Fisherman held her down and the brothers argued over who would rape her first as she pleaded with them not to assault her, according to Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.

The second incident, in October 2017, involved a woman who said she was sexually assaulted by Oren Alexander at his apartment after drinking a glass of wine that left her feeling weak and unable to control her body, according to prosecutors.

They said the third incident happened in October 2021 and involved a woman who said she was assaulted by Oren Alexander after going back to his residence with friends following dinner.

Williams, the U.S. Attorney in New York, said the three brothers were arrested in Florida on Wednesday and will appear in Miami federal court before being brought to New York.

He declined to say if others also will be charged but urged any other possible victims to come forward.

Meanwhile lawyers for the brothers denied the charges, which include one count of engaging in a sex trafficking conspiracy for each sibling.

“Oren Alexander is innocent,” attorney Susan Necheles wrote in an email. “The evidence will show that neither he nor his brothers ever committed a crime.”

“My client will be entering a not guilty plea and dealing with these charges in the appropriate forum .. .the courtroom,” responded Isabelle Kirshner, a lawyer for Alon Alexander.

Joel Denaro, a lawyer for Tal Alexander, declined to comment.

The elder brother appeared in Miami federal court Wednesday and will have a detention hearing Friday as prosecutors argue he’s a danger to the community and a flight risk. The two other brothers are in state custody and are expected to appear in court Thursday.

Representatives for a number of women who filed lawsuits earlier this year claiming they were violently raped by the brothers welcomed the charges.

“We are glad to hear that there will finally be some measure of accountability for the Alexander brothers and justice for their many victims,” lawyer David Gottlieb wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “We applaud all the survivors who have had the strength and courage to speak up about their unimaginable experiences after years of pain and suffering.”

Tal Alexander, 38, and Oren Alexander, 37, first worked as a team under real estate giant Douglas Elliman, listing properties for Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, Liam Gallagher, and Lindsay Lohan. In 2022, they started a new company called Official.

Alon Alexander, who is Oren's twin brother, attended law school and joined the family's private security business.

__

Associated Press reporter Michael Schneider in Orlando, Florida, contributed to this story.

Follow Philip Marcelo at twitter.com/philmarcelo.

Suspects arrested or at large are displayed during State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle's press conference at the State Attorney's Office, in Miami, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, regarding the arrest of the Alexander twin brothers and suspect at large Ohad Fisherman for their sexual assault allegations in Miami Beach. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald via AP)

State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, right, reacts as she speaks during a press conference at the State Attorney's Office, in Miami, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, regarding the arrest of the Alexander twin brothers and suspect at large Ohad Fisherman for their sexual assault allegations in Miami Beach. Natalie Snyder, left, Division Chief of the Sexual Battery and Child Abuse Unit of the State Attorney's Office for Miami-Dade County, listens. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald via AP)

This photo provided by Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department shows from left, Alon Alexander and Oren Alexander, both have been charged with sex trafficking, according to a federal indictment unsealed in New York on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department via AP.

This still image from video from the U.S. Attorney's Office shows James Dennehy, the assistant director in charge of the FBI's New York Field Office, during a news conference, in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, as it's announced that luxury real estate brokers Oren and Tal Alexander and their sibling Alon Alexander have been charged with sex trafficking, according to a federal indictment unsealed in Manhattan. (U.S. Attorney's Office via AP)

FILE - Oren Alexander and Tal Alexander speak at a panel at the Rockstars of Real Estate Event, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013 in New York. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Invision for DETAILS Magazine/AP Images, File)

This still image from video from the U.S. Attorney's Office shows U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams during a news conference, in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, as he announces luxury real estate brokers Oren and Tal Alexander and their sibling Alon Alexander have been charged with sex trafficking, according to a federal indictment unsealed in Manhattan. (U.S. Attorney's Office via AP)

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin has not missed many games during his two decades in the NHL with the Washington Capitals, and that remarkable durability is one reason why he is fast-approaching Wayne Gretzky's career goals record.

The Capitals had lost 33 of their 59 games without Ovechkin in the lineup during his first 19 seasons, including 23 of 36 over the past decade. In stark contrast to that, they've won six of nine since the 39-year-old captain was sidelined by a broken left fibula — a testament to a roster built not only to help him break the record but prepare the organization for the post-Ovechkin era.

“Ovi, he’s a legend, he’s special, he’s always going to probably lead the team in goals and we’re a better team with him, but we’re also a team where I think we’re not necessarily maybe relying on one or two players to win games,” said center Lars Eller, who rejoined the team in a trade from Pittsburgh a month ago. “We have four pretty strong lines, three D pairs and two good goalies. We don’t depend on one or two individuals, and I think that’s the strength of the team.”

Depth fortified by the additions of centers Dylan Strome, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Eller, wingers Andrew Mangiapane, Brandon Duhaime and Taylor Raddysh, defensemen Jakob Chychrun, Matt Roy and Rasmus Sandin and goaltenders Charlie Lindgren and Logan Thompson over the past few years has been the key to remaining a playoff contender.

Longtime general manager Brian MacLellan, who after the most recent makeover this past summer handed day-to-day duties to Chris Patrick and moved upstairs as president of hockey operations, excelled in keeping Washington's winning window open with Ovechkin in the second-to-last year of his contract. Veteran defenseman John Carlson said the infusion of talent “really lit a fire under everybody.”

The Capitals led the Eastern Conference when Ovechkin got injured Nov. 18, and they remain atop the East more than three weeks into his absence. Fourteen players have scored a goal during this stretch, including six wins and an overtime defeat since losing the first two without him.

“We’re a deep group,” said right winger Tom Wilson, the team's leading scorer during this stretch with nine points on five goals and four assists who expects to continue playing with a shield protecting his face after breaking a small bone in the sinus cavity area on the left side. "Everybody’s kind of stepping up on any given night. It’s a real group effort, and I think guys are really playing for each other.”

Carlson, who along with Ovechkin, Wilson and now Eller upon return are the only players left from Washington's 2018 Stanley Cup championship team, also sees it as a case of younger teammates taking advantage of this chance.

“There’s the colossal emptiness of it, but there’s also a lot of opportunity for guys who would never otherwise be there when he’s on this team,” Carlson said. “When someone goes down, it’s obviously always kind of a rallying thing where guys need to step up, guys need to fill in and play bigger roles and play more minutes. But I think the way that our team’s built is depth, and that’s been our strength this year is kind of contributions from everybody.”

Ovechkin led all players with 15 goals when he went down, and the Capitals were the high-scoring team in the league at 4.33 goals a game. They still are, down just a tick to an average of 4.04, and their 16 goals from defensemen are a big reason for that after ranking second-last in blue line production last season.

“We’re playing to our structure and doing what we want to do out there,” said Chychrun, who has eight points in nine games as part of an impressive start to his contract year. “We’ve got a D corps where everybody’s a really good player on that back end and can play in all situations and two-way guys and guys who have contributed offensively throughout their career.”

Another major defense is second-year coach Spencer Carbery, who acknowledged the structure and playing standard as a good place to start but pointed the credit to veteran leaders like Carlson, Strome, Wilson and Nic Dowd for shepherding the Capitals through Ovechkin-less hockey.

“They don’t go around the room and go, ‘Hey, we’ve got to do more, guys,’” Carbery said. “They don’t announce it, but what they do is they think about it and go: ‘OK, we’re missing him. I’ve got to step my game up and I need to bring more.’ And that’s not just on the ice, on the power play, on 5 on 6 when we’re defending a lead. It’s not just the Xs and Os. It’s in the locker room. It’s energy in practice. It’s all the things that he brings every day when he’s in the lineup and when he’s practicing.”

Ovechkin skated before practice Wednesday and got an assist from longtime running mate Nicklas Backstrom, who stepped away 13 months ago because of a lingering hip injury. Carlson quipped, “I think Ovi wanted someone with a little more skill passing him the rock out there.”

The day is coming soon when Ovechkin returns to team drills and then game action. The Capitals are doing more than stay afloat without him, but they'll welcome him back with open arms the moment he's ready.

As Eller said, “Obviously I think we’re even better when he’s in the lineup.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Washington Capitals' Tom Wilson reacts after scoring against the Montreal Canadiens during the third period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024 in Montreal. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

Washington Capitals' Tom Wilson scores against Montreal Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault during the third period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024 in Montreal. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

Washington Capitals' Connor McMichael, left, Tom Wilson, center, and Pierre-Luc Dubois, right, celebrate after McMichael scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils, Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

Washington Capitals center Nic Dowd, right, celebrates his goal with defenseman John Carlson (74) during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the San Jose Sharks, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)