A former New York City judge who resigned last year while under investigation has been charged with using his position to defraud real estate investors of at least $5 million. Edward Harold King, 72, and developer Yechiel “Sam” Sprei, 37, were arrested on wire fraud conspiracy charges, federal prosecutors announced on Wednesday.
According to the criminal complaint, King and Sprei tricked two investors into wiring $6.5 million for a bogus property bid in Freehold, New Jersey. They promised the funds would be held safely in King’s attorney escrow account, but within days transferred millions to an account in Sprei’s name. When the investors demanded their money back, only $1.5 million was returned.
Prosecutors alleged that King, who served as a judge since 2023, lent false legitimacy to the scheme by touting his judicial role as an independent escrow agent. Assistant US Attorney Andrew Wang told the court that the transaction was “one of several schemes” under investigation, and that “many, many millions of dollars” have passed through Sprei’s accounts in recent years.
King resigned on 31 December 2025, days after the state Commission on Judicial Conduct informed him it was investigating complaints that he had engaged in a real estate fraud and continued to practice law, despite rules barring full-time judges from doing so. King denied those allegations.
Both men were released on bail and are due back in Brooklyn federal court on Monday. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison. Sprei’s lawyer declined to comment; King’s lawyer also declined, as the former judge avoided reporters by cutting through a park after the hearing.
