A former Brooklyn judge who stepped down from the bench last year amid misconduct allegations now faces federal criminal charges for allegedly using his judicial authority to defraud real estate investors of more than $5 million, with some of those stolen funds going toward his personal expenses.
Edward Harold King, who departed his judicial role at the close of 2025, along with Yechiel “Sam” Sprei, a real estate developer with political connections, were taken into custody by federal agents on charges of wire fraud conspiracy. Prosecutors allege the pair misled two investors into providing $6.5 million for a fraudulent property purchase, then returned only a small portion of the funds.
These criminal accusations mirror allegations previously raised in civil court cases and complaints filed with the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, which prompted King’s departure from the bench.
During the defendants’ first court hearing on Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Wang informed the presiding judge that the criminal case represents “one of several schemes that the government has been investigating.” When addressing Sprei’s financial situation, the prosecutor noted that “it’s safe to say many, many millions of dollars” have passed through his banking accounts recently.
Both King, age 72, and Sprei, age 37, were granted bail and must return to Brooklyn federal court on Monday to complete their bond proceedings. King and his attorney, Michael Vitaliano, refused to speak to media as they exited the courthouse. The former judge escaped through nearby park trees to evade reporters and cameras. Sprei’s attorney, Ezra Lent, also declined comment.
Wang revealed in court that during Sprei’s arrest, the developer falsely told FBI agents he possessed no electronic devices except his cellphone. After agents confiscated the phone during a search warrant execution, they discovered a second phone while conducting a pat-down search, Wang stated.
Both defendants face potential sentences of up to 20 years in federal prison if found guilty.
“As alleged, the defendants stole millions of dollars from investors by cynically leveraging King’s position as a sitting judge to lend false legitimacy to supposed investment opportunities,” U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a statement.
King stepped down on Dec. 31, 2025, merely three years into his judicial career, after the Commission on Judicial Conduct notified him of an investigation into complaints that parallel his current criminal charges.
The commission stated that among the complaints were allegations that King participated in a real estate investor fraud scheme and continued practicing law despite judicial prohibitions, including accepting money into his personal attorney escrow accounts. Full-time judges are forbidden from legal practice, serving as fiduciaries, or conducting business activities. King disputed these allegations.
Federal prosecutors say King and Sprei presented investors with fake investment opportunities while falsely promising their money would remain secure in attorney escrow accounts and be returned upon request if investors chose to withdraw.
In November 2024, according to prosecutors, Sprei and King presented two investors with a chance to purchase commercial property in Freehold, New Jersey, through a bankruptcy sale. Sprei explained that all potential bidders must first demonstrate “proof of liquidity” by placing $6.5 million in King’s escrow account, prosecutors stated. Sprei informed the investors that King served as both an independent escrow agent and a judge, according to prosecutors.
The investors transferred the funds to King’s account, where they were assured the money would remain untouched and not be spent or moved without authorization, prosecutors said. Within days, prosecutors alleged, King and Sprei moved several million dollars to an account under Sprei’s name.
When the investors later requested their money back as promised, King provided excuses and alternative proposals, including one instance where he claimed his lawyer would deposit the funds with an unspecified court, prosecutors said. King and Sprei ultimately returned $1.5 million to the investors but have failed to provide the remainder, prosecutors stated.
King began his judicial service in 2023, winning election to the New York City Civil Court in Brooklyn before receiving appointment to the state’s primary trial court in June 2024.
Before becoming a judge, he worked in private legal practice and, based on news coverage of his campaign, received court appointments to oversee assets in real estate litigation. He previously worked as an administrative law judge for the city’s Parking Violations Bureau and provided legal counsel to the state assembly.
Upon accepting King’s resignation, commission administrator Robert Tembeckjian described the allegations as “so egregious as to warrant his permanent departure from the bench.”
