NEW YORK — A New York Supreme Court judge has ordered Brooklyn property owner Xi Hui “Steven” Wu to pay more than $4.2 million, plus nearly a decade of interest, after finding he defrauded at least 20 Chinese immigrant families through a fraudulent condominium scheme in Bay Ridge. In a summary judgment ruling announced Friday by Attorney General Letitia James, the court found Wu and his companies liable for illegally selling non-existent condominium units at 345 Ovington Ave. Wu collected millions of dollars in down payments, mortgage-style payments and fees from families who believed they were purchasing homes, even though the building was never legally converted into a condominium.
The court awarded $4,227,888 in restitution, with 9% interest dating back to 2016, to be returned to the affected families. Wu has also been permanently barred from selling securities or conducting business in New York.
According to the attorney general’s office, Wu filed an offering plan in 2013 but failed to complete required steps to legally establish the condominium, including creating individual tax lots and deeds. Despite this, he sold units using informal agreements written in Chinese and continued collecting monthly payments from residents for years.
State investigators found Wu fabricated documents and misled regulators to conceal the scheme, which ultimately cost immigrant families more than $5 million in savings. Attorney General James sued Wu and related entities in 2022.
Advocates for the residents said the ruling brings long-awaited justice and helps preserve housing stability for the families who believed they owned their homes.
