The noose is tightening over millions of unaccounted dollars at the expense of about 2,000 residents at the Success Village co-op, split between Bridgeport and Stratford, who were without heat and hot water until court intervention appointed attorney Barry Knott to sort out the mess.
Bit by bit Knott is tightening the knot via a forensic audit that’s revealing millions of dollars in common charges spent on things that had nothing to with the purpose of the payments. Property taxes on the units not paid, utilities not paid, millions paid for maintenance work that was not done.
Meanwhile, state and federal law enforcement officials are also conducting criminal probes.
From Dan Tepfer, CT Examiner:
According to prior court testimony, $3 million disappeared from the co-op’s bank accounts during a three-year period during which a prior board, headed by Tyreke Bird, was in charge of the sprawling complex that straddles the Bridgeport/Stratford line. In addition, $1.3 million paid by an insurance company for damage in a fatal fire at the complex, can’t be accounted for.
…Knott told the judge on Thursday that as part of his investigation into the missing funds he found that $2.7 million had been paid by the co-op’s former management to a company, Umbrella Mechanical, for repair of steam leaks in the complex.
“No work was ever done,” he told the judge.
Knott told the judge that he also recently found out that people involved in the former management of the complex had been renting apartments to nonmembers of the co-op and keeping the rents for themselves.
“This is outrageous malfeasance and we are trying to find out who has been renting out these units,” he said.
Full story here
The article above, initially identified as Dan Tepfer, at the CT Mirror, actually leads you to a Tepfer article on the CT Examiner, for which you need to pay $20.00 for an annual subscription. However, as someone who likes to write a check, they provide no address to which to send the funds.
So, how did OIB confuse the Dan Tepfer authorship? And why is the CT Examiner not providing a US Postal Service address to which funds can be sent for a subscription or support? As I frequently say, time will tell.
Thank you for the catch JML. Yes, Dan Tepfer, former CT Post reporter, now writes for CT Examiner.
Lennie, when is the Bradley trial scheduled to start? I hear that Dennis Bradley is again a target of the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation). It look like we will soon witness the FBI vs FBI fight. Dennis Bradley is the DUMBES of all member of the FBI (Fucking Bridgeport Idiots). He is so dumb, an Idiot like Maria Pereira was able to get him indicted.
Excuse me, I am OIB (Lennie Grimaldi is my Padrino) since he named me Speedy and Baptize me not with holy water but, with Black Ink. We are aware that Dan Tepfer moved over to The Examiner.
Time had changed and you simply refuse to stay old fashioned. Writing checks is a practice soon to be written-off history. Pay with a debit card, save some 🌳s, get the process moving with SPEED.
OIB TRIVIA: Did you John Marshall Lee would instantly drop dead of a heart attack if he ever received a tax-bill of $26.8 billion?
https://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-letter-berkshire-hathaway-taxes-government-waste-stocks-cash-2025-2
Correction : Did you know…
FACTS AND TRUTHFUL JOURNALISM, isn’t that what we are about on Only in Bridgeport??
SPECULATION AND FANCY seem to be your work in process. Lots of time on your hands these days? What is any purpose you pursue pointing to the “common good?”
ANSWER: If the IRS were to send me a tax bill for $26.8 Billion I would likely frame it, rather than “instantly drop dead of a heart attack” and have a good laugh with others.
Since noting the above article, I have reached out to Greg Stroud, owner and Editor in Chief, CTExaminer, had a conversation, sent him a check by USPS and look forward to read what Dan Tepfer has shared in two recent articles. Just sharing…..time will tell.
“FACTS AND TRUTHFUL JOURNALISM, Only in Bridgeport??”
First, I see you started with all caps YELLING. You’re a though guy now that you’re a member of MS-13.
Second, “isn’t that what we are about on…”
We? Most definitely NOT you. You don’t even come close to my level–not just on OIB.
SPECULATION? FANCY?
When you read my comments directed at you, it feels like you’re under STRANGULATION. I bet that the great majority of OIB readers would agree that my writing tickles their FANCY.
As for the rest of your posting, I’m sure you just said to yourself. ” Thank God Speedy Slammed the Brakes on me.”
Looks like a big BOD conspiracy consisting of sub-conspiracies with other entities. Lots of people to eventually file charges against. Obviously the BOD Chair is the prime perpetrator (by action and inaction) of the malfeasance over all of the theft that occurred; at least a couple of other BOD members must have been complicit… But most interesting is how real-estate speculation interests got their hands on units to illegally rent. Real estate speculation is at a manic level in these parts, so it’s not surprising that there was drooling and illegal speculation at this vulnerable condo community. (Modest-income condo communities are particularly vulnerable to predatory speculation — especially by unscrupulous BOD members and condo management companies conspiring with the latter to acquire property for sale and rent. BOD’s and management companies often use common-charge increases and “special assessments” (per conspiracy) to force sale and surrender of condos in order to pursue cheap acquirement and later profitable sale and rental. It looks like that was part of the SV conspiracy…)
So much going on in this story. A very “connected” (politically) BOD in a vote-rich condo-community in a very contested area of the city. It wouldn’t shock me if there were politicians connected to this conspiracy that were, and are, running cover for the conspirators. Some of the former may have been looking to bank illegal absentee ballots in last year’s (and previous) ballot-stuffing election thefts — and, indeed, they may have had their hands in the pot, perhaps as real estate speculators or “service providers”…
Lastly, Umbrella Mechanical seems as if it might be a “shell” company set up just to fleece SV: who are the principals and what lawyer(s) helped to set it up?…
It is going to be interesting when everything gets sorted out and charges get filed… No telling what names might show up… (How did the culprits think that they could just keep deferring maintenance and bill-paying?!)
But, in the end, what counts is that the residents/owners of SV are made whole, with their physical plant and self-governance restored without any of them losing their homes or forced to sell or surrender the latter…
Here is the article..
BRIDGEPORT – The lawyer appointed to oversee the more than 900-unit Success Village co-op told a judge Thursday he is closer to finding out what happened to the millions of dollars that “disappeared” from the co-op’s bank accounts.
Stratford attorney Barry Knott said in “three or four weeks” he should have the results of a forensic audit.
“You have to follow the money,” Superior Court Judge Dale Radcliffe told Knott.
According to prior court testimony, $3 million disappeared from the co-op’s bank accounts during a three-year period during which a prior board, headed by Tyreke Bird, was in charge of the sprawling complex that straddles the Bridgeport/Stratford line. In addition, $1.3 million paid by an insurance company for damage in a fatal fire at the complex, can’t be accounted for.
The missing money is also the subject of two investigations by federal and state authorities.
Bird has referred questions about the missing money to Knott.
The $3 million, collected from residents’ monthly maintenance fees, was to go to repair the complex’s deteriorated heat and hot water systems which were shut down last spring. Following a court hearing in October, Judge Radcliife, citing the emergency need to get heat and hot residents to the 2,000 residents, appointed Knott to take financial control of the complex.
Knott told the judge on Thursday that as part of his investigation into the missing funds he found that $2.7 million had been paid by the co-op’s former management to a company, Umbrella Mechanical, for repair of steam leaks in the complex.
“No work was ever done,” he told the judge.
Knott told the judge that he also recently found out that people involved in the former management of the complex had been renting apartments to nonmembers of the co-op and keeping the rents for themselves.
“This is outrageous malfeasance and we are trying to find out who has been renting out these units,” he said.
Since Knott took over the complex heat and hot water have been restored thanks to loans from the city of Bridgeport and town of Stratford. But Knott told the judge that the complex continues to have a huge shortfall and as a result will have to increase the monthly fee for residents from $500 to $600. In the meantime he said he is talking to the state Department of Housing about a $3 million grant and to area banks about possible loans for the complex.
Richard J. Buturla, the lawyer representing the city and the town of Stratford which are owed millions of dollars in unpaid taxes by the co-op, told the judge he is satisfied with the progress Knott is making.
The judge added he is optimistic that some day the complex will be able to operate on its own without Knott and his intervention.