The high-profile trial of three brothers, prominent figures in the luxury property world, is set to begin in New York City. Oren, Tal, and Alon Alexander face serious sex trafficking charges, accused of a years-long campaign of abuse against women.
Last-Minute Legal Manoeuvres Before Trial
Jury selection was expected to commence on Tuesday, 20 January 2026, with the process projected to last about two days. Opening statements are scheduled for the following Monday, with the trial anticipated to run until early March.
Just days before proceedings began, defence lawyers renewed a request for a New York judge to dismiss key charges. In filings submitted to Manhattan federal court, they argued prosecutors had acted unfairly by rewriting the indictment as recently as last week and adding new charges without giving the defence adequate time to investigate.
The latest version of the indictment, filed on Thursday, is the third update in two months. It accuses the brothers of luring women with free travel and luxury stays before allegedly drugging and raping them in destinations such as New York's Hamptons.
The Allegations and the Defence
Prosecutors allege the brothers typically met victims on dating apps, at social events, and in nightclubs. They are accused of providing drugs like cocaine and psychedelic mushrooms, or spiking drinks, before sexually assaulting the women over the course of a dozen years.
Oren and Tal Alexander were well-known luxury real estate moguls for over a decade before co-founding the firm Official, which specialises in high-end properties in Miami, New York, and Los Angeles. Oren and Alon are 38-year-old twins, while Tal is 39. Alon, a law school graduate, was an executive at the family's security firm.
The defence acknowledges the men had sexual encounters but insists all participants were willing. The brothers, arrested in Miami in December 2024, have been held without bail and have repeatedly pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Contested Charges and Judicial Rulings
Defence lawyers urged Judge Valerie E. Caproni to drop several charges, including a conspiracy count that was substantially altered shortly before trial. "The defence should not be forced to trial on a conspiracy count that was changed at the last minute," they wrote.
Judge Caproni has shown some sympathy for these protests. On Friday, she denied a prosecution request to call a new witness for the conspiracy charge, noting the request came well after an October deadline for disclosing evidence. She also ruled that Alon Alexander could not use his 2019 engagement and subsequent marriage as proof he had left the alleged conspiracy.
A particularly serious charge involves Oren Alexander and an allegation of sexual exploitation of a minor from April 2009. Prosecutors claim he coerced an incapacitated 17-year-old into explicit conduct for filming. The defence contests the authenticity of her birth certificate, issued by a former Soviet republic now in a war zone. A conviction on this charge carries a mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence.
The defence has also attacked the legal basis of the sex trafficking charges, arguing prosecutors are using an unprecedented theory that any item of value used to bring someone to a location for sex constitutes commercial sex under trafficking law.
In a separate development, The New York Times reported that a 45-year-old Australian woman who had accused Oren and Alon Alexander of sexual assault was found dead near Sydney late last year. Authorities stated the death was deemed "non-suspicious."
