The retired upstate choose and former prosecutor who allegedly took his personal life in a shootout with the FBI was tied to a significant bribery rip-off by means of a damning path of cancelled checks and textual content messages.
Stewart Rosenwasser, 72, cashed dozens of checks and cash orders from his rich co-defendant over an almost two-year interval that noticed him pocket $63,000 in change for fabricating an embezzlement case as a prime prosecutor with the Orange County District Legal professional’s Workplace, a federal indictment within the case reveals.
The checks from co-defendant Mout’z Soudani, together with a string of $5,000 funds marked “mortgage,” had been a part of a paper path that tied Rosenwasser to the scandal — and despatched federal brokers to arrest him at his dwelling on Tuesday morning when he opened hearth on them then apparently took his personal life.
“It’s actually heartbreaking that it ended this fashion,” Orange County District Legal professional David Hoovler mentioned in a press release Wednesday. “My heartfelt condolences exit to his household.”
The US Legal professional’s Workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark, however the 43-page indictment voted Monday towards Rosenwasser and Soudani speaks volumes concerning the case.
Soudani was arrested and arraigned on federal corruption expenses Tuesday and launched on bail, prosecutors mentioned Wednesday — however it’s the disgraced prosecutor who has made headlines.
The allegations learn like a spy novel, with the then-prosecutor and the previous restauranteur assembly secretly at out-of-the-way spots that included an area diner the place Soudani allegedly handed over a verify for $15,000 in November 2022, in accordance with the doc.
The payoffs would proceed for months, with Soudani allegedly paying off his prosecutor pal to drum up an embezzlement case towards Soudani’s sister and nephew, who he accused of stealing from him.
Rosenwasser had recognized Soudani, a millionaire onetime restauranteur, for almost 40 years and even represented him in courtroom within the Nineteen Nineties, in accordance with the indictment.
He earned his diploma from Albany Legislation Faculty in 1977 and began his 47-year profession in personal apply till becoming a member of the DA’s workplace and was elected a county courtroom choose in 1999.
He retired from the bench in 2006, however 13 years later rejoined the Orange County District Legal professional’s Workplace as particular counsel of Coverage, Analysis and Authorized Growth, which put him in control of the workplace’s Conviction Integrity Unit.
However by October 2022, federal prosecutors mentioned Rosenwasser was promising his outdated buddy Soudani that he would put “most effort” into investigating and prosecuting his sister and nephew.
The prosecutor was true to his phrase, and each Soudani’s newphew, Martin, and sister, Eman, can be arrested and charged with embezzling $1.6 million from Mout’z Soudani, the indictment mentioned.
“I’m going to enter grand jury as quickly as I obtain your licensed financial institution information,” Rosenwasser allegedly texted Soudani on Dec. 23, 2022. “I’ve organized an audit of all of the digital transfers.”
Soudani responded, “I offer you my phrase on the finish you’ll be extraordinarily very happy god bless you you the one man who may do that. Please I’ve to fulfill with you wherever you say for 5 minutes earlier than you permit to Colorado thanks.”
In March 2023, Martin and Eman Soudani had been charged with grand larceny and different expenses, and the case towards each moved ahead because the lead prosecutor towards them.
In courtroom the next month, Martin Soudani’s lawyer requested Rosenwasser to recuse himself from the case, arguing that his “relationship to this household creates at the very least the looks of a battle.”
Rosenwasser claimed there was no battle, and denied having represented Mout’z Soudani.
“As I indicated to you throughout our first telephone dialog, I don’t recall a single occasion that I served as Mount’s Soudani’s private lawyer and wouldn’t even describe my relationship with the Soudani household as social,” he allegedly wrote the protection lawyer, prosecutors mentioned.
The feds say that was a lie — and that Rosenwasser had taken $25,000 in bribes by then.
The funds saved coming, together with from 10 cash orders for $1,000 every that Soudani allegedly purchased on Could 10, 2023 — with Rosenwasser depositing $3,000 of it 5 days later.
With the warmth constructing contained in the DA’s workplace, Rosenwasser was lastly taken off the embezzlement case in June 2023 — with the prosecution beginning to disintegrate.
In the end, the case towards Eman Soudani was thrown out, whereas her son lower a deal, pleading responsible to grand larceny in change for a jail sentence of 1 to seven years in jail.
But, as late as January 2024, Rosenwasser cashed a $15,000 verify from Mout’z Soudani.
On June 18, Mout’z Soudani confessed that Rosenwasser directed him “to pay him by cash order and money reasonably than verify in order that the cash couldn’t be simply traced again….”
Each males had been indicted this week, with tragic penalties for Rosenwasser.
Further reporting by Joe Marino