Real estate stars Oren, Tal Alexander's brother accused of sex trafficking

Federal prosecutors in New York accused top real estate agents Tal and Oren Alexander and their brother Alon of drugging and raping “dozens of victims” over more than a decade.

The brothers “used their wealth and positions to create and facilitate opportunities to rape and sexually assault women,” according to a newly unsealed federal indictment accusing them of sex trafficking.

On occasion, they “lured” the women with luxury travel to destinations where they were sexually assaulted, the indictment alleged.

They also allegedly “worked together and with others known and unknown” to carry out the sex trafficking scheme. Damien Williams, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, declined to identify other people under investigation in this case.

The brothers — who were synonymous with Manhattan's luxury real estate market before accusations against them first surfaced earlier this year — were arrested in Miami on Wednesday morning.

They each face one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and one count of sex trafficking of a victim by force, fraud or coercion, according to the eight-page indictment in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. Tal Alexander faces an additional charge of sex trafficking of a victim by force, fraud or coercion.

Prosecutors said that, if convicted, the two brothers could face prison sentences ranging from 15 years to life.

Also on Wednesday, Florida Attorney General Katherine Fernandez Rundle unsealed separate charges against Oren and Alon Alexander related to alleged sexual assaults in the state.

Fernandez Randle announced at a news conference that Oren was charged with two counts of sexual battery in two separate incidents, and one count of sexual battery by multiple perpetrators. Alon faces charges of sexual assault by multiple perpetrators.

Ohad Fisherman, a cousin of the Alexanders, also faces charges in the Florida case but remains at large, Fernandez Randle said.

New York prosecutors on Wednesday also urged federal judges in Manhattan and Miami to keep the brothers detained, saying they “pose a continuing and significant danger to the community and pose a serious risk of flight.”

That warrant also noted that although the charged conduct occurred between 2010 and 2021, the federal investigation found that the Alexander brothers raped and sexually assaulted the victims for more than 20 years — starting when they were in high school.

“Orrin Alexander is innocent. The evidence will show that neither he nor his brothers ever committed a crime,” Oren's attorney, Susan Nicholls, said in a statement to NBC News.

Isabel Kirchner, Alon and Oren's attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Diana Paul, Tal's attorney, declined to comment.

“This conduct, as alleged, was egregious,” U.S. Attorney Williams said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon.

Williams noted that the Justice Department is still investigating the allegations against the Alexander brothers, and he urged others with information about the case to come forward. “We're not done yet,” he said.

Several women have previously filed civil lawsuits in Manhattan accusing the brothers of sexual assault. The brothers denied any wrongdoing.

“We are pleased to hear that there will finally be some measure of accountability for the Alexander brothers and justice for their many victims,” David Gottlieb, an attorney for the plaintiffs in a number of the civil lawsuits, said in a statement.

“We pay tribute to all the survivors who had the strength and courage to speak out about their unimaginable experiences after years of pain and suffering,” Gottlieb said.

Federal court filings unsealed Wednesday accused the brothers of carrying out a long-running sex trafficking scheme by deceiving and forcing victims to travel with them or meet them at private places.

The brothers allegedly “then used various methods, including drugging the victims, and sometimes physical force, to rape and sexually assault the victims — sometimes alone and sometimes together.”

The indictment describes a range of methods the brothers allegedly used to facilitate the scheme.

The indictment alleged that the brothers arranged international events and trips as “bait” to lure the women, who were then “repeatedly” assaulted.

They would also allegedly work with party promoters to get women to attend parties and events at their vacation properties, including their home in the Hamptons. Before those incidents, they and others were purchasing drugs including cocaine, mushrooms and GHB, which are considered rape drugs.

Oren and Tal in particular allegedly “used their prominent positions in the real estate industry” to induce women to attend events and parties. Alun runs the family's security company, Kent Security.

The indictment alleged that the brothers secretly spiked the women's drinks “on multiple occasions,” causing some of them to feel physically and mentally weak.

“Immediately” after assaulting the victims, the brothers would sometimes offer them “material items, including travel, concert tickets and other luxury experiences,” the indictment said.

Prosecutors alleged they would also use similar tactics to rape women they met by chance at nightclubs or parties, luring the women to a second location.

One of the brothers would sometimes meet women online and invite them to his apartment, prosecutors said in the detention memorandum.

Victims allegedly reported “in most cases” that a brother was offering them a drink at some point in the process, after which they felt symptoms of “inadvertently ingesting doses of a substance that impairs their physical abilities” or memories.

“Many of the victims told the brothers no or even screamed during the rapes, but on each occasion, the defendants ignored any verbal resistance,” prosecutors alleged in the memo.

— CNBC's Jim Forkin contributed to this report.