The receiver for an embattled West Palm Beach firm accused of a massive real estate and securities fraud plans to sell six of its residential properties and several office condos in South Florida.
Married couple Janalie Bingham and Jean Joseph, as well as Wells Real Estate Investment, which Bingham led as CEO, allegedly siphoned off more than $40 million they raised from 660 investors nationwide, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s lawsuit against the couple and Wells Real Estate, filed in August. From 2020 to last year, Bingham and Joseph lured people to invest $56 million by overstating the size of Wells’ real estate portfolio and promising high returns, the SEC’s complaint alleges.
Bingham and Joseph purchased some properties, but diverted the majority of funds, or about $28 million, to speculative options and futures trading, losing at least $11.9 million, the suit says. The couple also used at least $1.8 million for personal expenses, including luxury cars, and $6.9 million for commissions to sales agents. The scheme also had a Ponzi-like aspect when $10 million of investors’ funds were used to pay interest due to other investors and note redemptions, according to the complaint.
Federal Judge Donald Middlebrooks issued judgments in December barring Bingham and Joseph from violating the Securities Act and the Exchange Act, as well as banning them from serving as directors and officers of an entity that sells securities. Middlebrooks also had issued a judgment against Wells Real Estate in October.
Now, Andrés Rivero, an attorney and court-appointed receiver overseeing Wells Real Estate’s assets, plans to sell some of the firm’s real estate. The properties are owned by entities tied to Wells Real Estate.
Beyond the alleged fraud scheme, some of its real estate portfolio had fallen into financial hardship with lenders filing foreclosures, according to court filings. Rivero stayed the foreclosure suits. On at least one property, Wells Real Estate also was delinquent on payments to the condominium association, Rivero said in court filings.
Properties slated for sale include a 1,400-square-foot, two-bedroom condo at the Landings South building at 60 Yacht Club Drive in North Palm Beach, as well as a 2,600-square-foot, three-bedroom oceanfront condo at 3968 North Ocean Drive on Singer Island in Riviera Beach, according to Rivero’s court filings and property records.
The single-family homes Rivero plans to sell are: a 4,100-square-foot, five-bedroom house at 910 Parkside Circle North in Boca Raton; a 1,500-square-foot, three-bedroom house at 6574 Northwest Fourth Street in Margate; and a 3,300-square-foot, four-bedroom house at 100 Southwest 15th Court in Boca Raton, according to the receiver’s filings and property records. Also slated for sale is Bingham’s 7,000-square-foot, five-bedroom home at 930 North Parkside Circle in Boca Raton.
Middlebrooks has approved Rivero’s motion to hire Keyes Company to sell the properties.
Six vacant office condos at the Executive Court complex at 2295 Northwest Corporate Boulevard in Boca Raton already have a buyer lined up. Steven Levin made an offer to the receiver to purchase the properties for $1.6 million, which Middlebrooks approved. Wells Real Estate, which owns the units through an affiliate, allegedly defaulted on a $750,000 loan on the units in 2023. The lender had filed a foreclosure suit. Wells Real Estate also owed $64,677 in dues to the office condo association, according to the receiver’s court filings.
Rivero worked out a settlement with the lender to pay back the balance on the loan and waive the 11.9 percent default interest and other late fees. Also, the debt to the condo association will be settled for $52,487, according to Rivero’s filings.
Rivero, Bingham and an attorney listed for Joseph didn’t return requests for comment.
Joseph’s legal woes extend beyond Wells Real Estate. In 2019, he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud for misappropriating $3 million while operating his company, Evergreen United Investments. Joseph was ordered to pay this amount as restitution and was sentenced to 15 months in prison in 2019. He was placed on supervised release in 2021, according to the SEC’s lawsuit.
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