Disbarred and disgraced South Florida attorney Scott Rothstein didn't steal as much money as Bernie Madoff, but, this being the Sunshine State, Rothstein went about it in a much more gaudy way. The over-the-top Rothstein put his $1.2 billion in ill-gotten gains into sports cars, yachts, courtside seats, fancy steakhouses, police officers' pockets and the campaign coffers of various Republican politicians. Rothstein's rise and fall?he got 50 years in the slammer?is the stuff of South Florida legend. The Sun-Sentinel newspaper has an entire section of its website dedicated to him. His Wikipedia entry is like the screenplay to a great Scorsese flick. LOOK AT HIS TOILET! So yeah, the dude is awesome.
Rothstein also had a taste for luxury real estate. The empty lot across from his Fort Lauderdale waterfront mansion was just auctioned for $1.8 million. That property wasn't part of the criminal proceedings against Rothstein, and neither apparently is his Manhattan condo at One Beacon Court. There is no mention of restitution or bankruptcy or federal approval in the listing for the $5.4 million two-bed, two-and-a-half-bath condo on the 42nd floor, but records show that Rothstein is the owner.
Also listed on the deed is Rothstein's second wife, former real estate broker and all-around character Kim Rothstein, who hasn't been prosecuted, and therefore is probably free to sell. Recent reports indicate that Kim Rothstein is near a settlement with the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of her husband's law firm, so an influx of cash might be needed around now. The Rothsteins paid $5.95 million for the Midtown condo in 2008.
UPDATE: According to an in-the-know South Florida source, the condo was forfeited to the government, and Kim Rothstein no longer has any stake.
One Beacon Court, aka 151 East 58th Street, aka the Bloomberg Building (Mayor Mike's company is headquartered there, beneath the luxury condos) was also the New York City home of another disgraced scamster attorney, Marc Dreier. Dreier's apartment was eight floors below Rothstein's pad but twice the size, and it was auctioned off for $8.2 million in 2009. Is One Beacon Court now Manhattan's most scandalous building? Lux74 might have something to say about that. Here's the Rothstein floorplan:
· Listing: 151 East 58th Street #42D [Elliman]
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