Photo of Timothy Kroll (c) New Hope Free Press

Timothy Kroll (Courtesy of New Hope Free Press (c) 2016)

Sentencing of Timothy Kroll of Solebury for $17 million real estate fraud scheme delayed until July

Apple Jack's bar in Point Pleasant, P.A.

By Charlie Sahner

Timothy Kroll, 44, of Solebury, was scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday for participating in a scheme with partner Carlton Cabot to defraud real estate investors by using over $17 million as a personal slush fund, and covering it up with manipulated financial statements.

But U.S. Southern District Judge Jesse M. Furman ordered that sentencing be adjourned until July 19. No reason was given, and public officials didn’t return phone calls seeking comment.

Kroll and Cabot were arrested at their homes last June, and charged with seven counts, including wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering. They each face up to 105 years.

Kroll pleaded guilty to all seven counts against him on Oct. 7, 2015, according to court records. He had served as chief operating officer of Cabot Investment Properties (CIP), while Cabot, 52, of Stamford, claimed the title of CEO. All told, public records show that CIP pulled in at least $240 million from hundreds of investors.

The National Law Review on June 5, 2015, referring to Cabot, asked, “Is he the worst fraudster in modern history?“

Kroll has been free on $1 million bail, and said in a recent phone interview that he still owned The Local in Point Pleasant (purchased in 2014), formerly the Apple Jack bar. Kroll would not comment on the case, although he made clear that The Local represented a new chapter in his life.

Among other charges, New York prosecutors said that Kroll spent $50,000 of investor funds on a New York City apartment, $40,000 on a credit card, and more than $22,000 toward a BMW automobile.

Barn fire on Saw Mill Road (Photo: Solebury Police Department)

In an unrelated incident, Solebury police on Oct. 19, 2015, responded to a barn fire at Kroll’s five-bedroom residence at 6581 Saw Mill Road. Two Icelandic show horses perished in the blaze, along with some chickens, and the cause of the fire is still “undetermined,” according to a county fire official.

With regard to Kroll’s business activity, the original complaint filed in the Southern District of New York states, “From 2003 through 2012, CIP – which was controlled by Cabot and Kroll – sponsored and oversaw approximately 18 so-called tenants-in-common (TIC) securities offerings to investors located all over the United States.” TICs are a type of a real estate investment in which investors collectively own a piece of commercial real estate, and are entitled to receive a portion of the rental income from the property.

From 2008 through 2012, say prosecutors, “Cabot and Kroll engaged in a scheme to defraud the TIC Investors by misappropriating funds belonging to the TIC Investments, and concealing their misappropriations by providing false and misleading financial reports and other information to the TIC Investors.

According to the prospectuses for the TIC Investments, CIP was only allowed to collect “excess” rental income from the TIC Investments, but Cabot and Kroll repeatedly transferred money out of bank accounts belonging to the TIC Investments and into CIP bank accounts that they controlled before the TIC Investments could use the funds to pay for operating expenses and disbursements to the TIC Investors. Cabot and Kroll, say investigators, then used these funds to pay for the following three unauthorized purposes, without the knowledge or authorization of the TIC Investors:

1) Cabot and Kroll caused millions of dollars to be transferred from the CIP Operating Accounts to the bank accounts of TIC Investments that had no available funds to cover their operating expenses and investor distributions. In this way, Cabot and Kroll were able to perpetuate the fraud scheme by propping up failing TIC Investments using funds belonging to other TIC Investments.

2) The duo used the funds in the CIP Operating Accounts belonging to the TIC Investments to pay for millions of dollars of personal expenses, including expensive cars, rental apartments, and private school tuition.

3) Cabot and Kroll used the funds in the CIP Operating Accounts belonging to the TIC Investments to pay for CIP business expenses, including an approximately $1.1M civil settlement to certain TIC Investors who had sued Cabor, Kroll, CIP, and a CIP sibsidiary.

To conceal their misappropriation of TIC Investment funds from the TIC Investors, say prosecutors, Cabot and Kroll provided false and misleading financial reports to the TIC Investors that intentionally hid the fact that CIP owed large sums of money to the TIC Investments. Kroll also gave false and misleading information to the TIC Investors about how the TIC Investment funds were managed in order to prevent the TIC Investors from learning the true financial status of their investment.

By the end of 2012, when CIP ceased its day-to-day operations, CIP and principals Cabot and Kroll owed approximately $17 million to the TIC Investments, which has never been repaid.

Investigators who ballyhooed the arrests of Kroll and Cabot had little to say Tuesday about whether victims, many retired and having lost their life savings to defaulted investments, will ever be compensated.

Both the United States Postal Inspection Service and IRS did not respond to queries about the sentencing postponement. A call to the public relations department of the normally publicity-hungry Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara was ducked.

Despite admitting he was ‘man in white van’, suspect in alleged Solebury child luring not charged by Bucks County DA

Solebury Township Police circulated this photo of a van similar to that of the suspect during their May manhunt

By Charlie Sahner

A Perkasie man who confessed to Solebury Township Police that he was the operator of a white van involved in an alleged child luring attempt, and who was also questioned on a similar purported incident by a Pennridge Regional Police officer, will not be prosecuted by the Bucks County DA’s Office.

The decision appears to be based on a legal technicality and the results of a polygraph test, according to interviews with law enforcement officials and publicly available information.

On May 13, Solebury Township Police said they received a report of an incident during which a white male in a white van allegedly attempted to convince three boys in the North Pointe development to approach his vehicle so he could “give them a basketball.”

The three boys, aged approximately 10-11, had been playing in a residential driveway when approached, were immediately suspicious, and told their parents.

Four days later, Solebury Township police say they were alerted to a purportedly similar incident that was investigated by a Pennridge Regional Police officer. In that incident, three boys of similar age to the three involved in Solebury were also offered a basketball by the alleged suspect in his van while playing outside their home. The Pennridge officer apparently did not make an arrest, and the Pennridge Regional Police Department did not return a call from the Free Press seeking comment.

Subsequently, one of the boys involved in the Solebury incident was able to identify the alleged suspect in a photo lineup. At that point, according to Detective/Corporal Roy Ferrari of the Solebury Township Police, “The suspect confessed, and said he was a ‘scrapper’, and that he picks through garbage and finds sporting goods, which he offers to children.” He also indicated that “in Philadelphia, his gifts are appreciated,” said Ferrari.

Ferrari told the suspect, “I find your behavior in Solebury to be suspicious and alarming.” Solebury Police requested a charge of misdemeanor in the first degree for attempting to lure a child into a vehicle, they say.

But the Bucks County DA said the suspect’s actions were “not substantial” and that he would not prosecute, said Ferrari, “because when the [Solebury] kids ran away, he threw the basketball after them, although he originally said ‘come and get it’.” Additionally, said Ferrari, the suspect passed a polygraph test ordered by the DA’s office. The usefulness of polygraphs is the subject of some controversy among scientists.

Solebury Police Chief Dominick P. Bellizzie said he requested an explanation of the decision, and in a May 29 letter, the DA said that “he felt that the suspect’s actions didn’t warrant criminal prosecution because he never invited them into the car, and he left the ball behind when the children ran away.”

While Solebury Police were quick to underscore their respect for Bucks County DA David W. Heckler's decision, their frustration level is clearly running high. After an all-out manhunt by veteran Detective Ferrari quickly netted a suspect, the technicality of whether the suspect allegedly said “come over here” or “come inside” seems to have played a large role in the DA’s decision not to pursue charges.

The Bucks County DA’s office did not return phone calls seeking comment.

New Hope-Solebury School District Facility Committee attempts to define scope of campus revitalization

By Charlie Sahner, New Hope Free Press

While the Facility Committee of the New Hope-Solebury School District
discussed several items at their meeting Tuesday night, including
updates on Field 13, the UES outdoor ‘pavilion’ learning center, and a
potential parking space lease with the owners of the proposed Odette’s
boutique conference center, the center ring was clearly occupied by an
attempt to reach a recommendation on the “level of campus revitalization
project.”

At stake is a multiyear, multimillion dollar overhaul of the School
District’s main campus on West Bridge Street that would address student
needs, repair and conserve existing infrastructure, and initiate
construction of other sections that will improve the functioning and
security of the UES, Middle School and High School. Most everyone agrees
that improved maintenance and security are desirable.

But the direction, cost and scope of the project has been the subject
of heated debate for some time, with several school board members
clearly setting their long-term sights on NH-S moving up in state
academic rankings, others wanting to prioritize updating the school
system’s sports facilities to ease what they perceive as congestion,
shortage of fields, and gender-based access equality concerns, and a
vocal group asking what all the construction is about and what it will
cost the taxpayers.

In the end, the Committee, with Chair Jonathan Adar keeping a firm
hand at the helm, narrowed possible revitalization recommendations from
three to two.

Said audience member and New Hope resident Mel Brand, “A lot of this
building is basically going to Solebury Township — the head of parks and
recreation wants space, and it’s going to be for their stuff after
school, that’s what it is.”

“Our first priority is to take care of the students; recreational
should be whatever is left,” said Ed Duffy, former New Hope Borough
Council Member.

School Superintendent Dr. Raymond Boccuti said, “After years of
looking at short- and long-term needs of the district, last evening at
the public board meeting, the facilities and finance committees were
directed to work together to move forward. So, we’re now working through
three design options to address all of these needs, and we took a step
forward tonight by focusing in on two of those options. After the next
Finance Committee meeting, I think the Facilities Committee will be
gearing up to make a formal recommendation to the School Board.”

Dar Williams hopes to brighten spirits at the New Hope Winery

Dar Williams (Photo: Amy Dickerson)

By Tara Lynn Johnson

They’re not concerts – they’re “connections” for musician/singer/songwriter Dar Williams.

She’ll be connecting with audiences at the New Hope Winery on Sunday, Dec. 22. She’s soon to celebrate the 20th anniversary of her first album, “The Honesty Room,” so a couple of tunes from that CD may make an appearance. She’ll also feature songs from her 2012 release “In the Time of Gods” and songs related to the holidays.

She’s looking forward to the shows, but even more to simply being among people enjoying music.
“You have the potential to create this relationship and you can feel it when it’s happening,” she said during our telephone conversation on December 12.

Even after more than 20 years, she’s not tired of it.
“There are rarely days when it doesn’t feel right,” she said. “I love performing.”

For a brief time in the mid-2000s, it felt wrong, though. She said everyone on her tour then was in a collective bad mood. The record industry was in turmoil, “but we didn’t see it coming,” she said. “There were about 10 concerts where it felt like work. I thought if this keeps up, I’ll quit.”

Not long after, she played a small venue in Quebec. The audience was laughing, having a good time. The windows steamed up; it was snowing outside. She previously had been terrified of that kind of intimacy with a smaller audience.

“But all that potential that could happen with an audience is the thing that keeps me on the stage now,” she said.

Growing up in New York state, Dar planned on being a playwright. When she moved to Boston in the early 1990s, though, the scene was all about music. She took it all in while working as an opera company stage manager.

“There was a lot of alt rock and punk, folk, even classical music happening,” she said. “I followed the music and secretly had enough passion about it that when I surfaced I could hang with the crowd.”
Since then, she has performed around the world and released more than 11 CDs (and EPs). The latest (“Gods”) emerged from an exploration of power, folly, hubris, and civilization, she said.

Sometimes, when writing, she gets a hit of inspiration and works on something excitedly, but if it’s not working, she puts the pen down, she said. She tries to put herself in a place to be inspired, but she doesn’t sit down with a blank page every day. Sometimes, when she’s stuck, she looks to nature.
“I’ll open the curtains and see the mist on the mountain and that it’s a beautiful day,” she said. “I will feel connected and find something that helps me feel excited.”

And sometimes, she writes with friends, like Rob Hyman, co-founder of The Hooters. Dar and Rob have worked together on several of her albums. He co-wrote four songs on “Gods” and played various keyboards and accordion.

“Rob is so patient. When I feel like I’m tied up in a knot, he’ll quietly sit there and play what we’ve already done and add a new chord or new perspective,” she said. “He’s the perfect collaborative partner. He’s been my muse on more than one occasion.”

Rob loves working with her and he’s impressed with her talent.

“Songwriting can be painful and prolonged sometimes, but never with Dar. She’s a terrific guitarist with a lovely and expressive voice and has a keen and confident sense of melody. She also has a great instinct for what works and what doesn’t,” he said via e-mail. “But one of her biggest strengths is her way with words. Her lyrics are consistently interesting, unusual, intriguing, [and] challenging.”

When not collaborating, writing, or performing, Dar is home with her husband, son, and daughter.

She’s stopping in New Hope one year to the day that she last played the Winery and she hopes people will find respite from all of the holiday hoopla.

She also hopes to bring light to the audience since it’s the weekend of the Winter solstice marking the end of the longest nights and shortest days of the year.

“This is a dark day that we can brighten up,” she said. “I hope people come out.”

Dar Williams
4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22
The New Hope Winery, 6123 Lower York Road, New Hope, PA 18938.
Tickets: $30-$40.
215-794-2331 or http://www.newhopewinery.com/

New Hope-Solebury School Board bans night games

By Charlie Sahner

In a move that left many around New Hope and Solebury slack-jawed in disbelief, the New Hope-Solebury School Board voted on Monday to turn off the lights at stadium field after the fall season.

Board Member Alison Kingsley made the surprise motion, which had neither been listed on the agenda nor publicly advertised, and it was seconded by John Vaughn. Marleen Panzika, Valerie Mitchell, and Kurt Zander joined them in voting in favor of the motion. School Board President Amanda Elefante had left the room at the time of the vote, and Board Member Susan Atkinson represented the lone vote against the measure. Joseph Harraka and Jonathan Adar were not in attendance at the meeting.

The subject of New Hope-Solebury's sports fields has come up frequently in recent years, as the school district is under-served in terms of practice and event space, which in turn can exacerbate Title IX compliance issues that seek to provide equal access to facilities for boys and girls. Additionally, some nearby neighbors have complained about the level of light and sound associated with nighttime sports events. One plan to address these concerns involved building a stadium funded substantially by private donations in an area referred to as Field 13. Key advantages of Field 13 are its distance from neighboring residents and its excellent topography, say plan advocates.

It was that proposal to pursue a stadium at Field 13 that was under consideration on the night of Sept. 16. School officials had previously taken measures to placate neighbors, including limiting pregame music, cutting overall sound amplification levels in half, and shutting down field lights by 9:30 p.m. after each game. Nonetheless, the Board voted down the compromise plan, and then went a step further, effectively banning night games altogether starting in the spring.

Despite multiple attempts, as of press time, no member of the New Hope-Solebury School Board or its counsel had provided an explanation or rationale for their vote that night to this publication. Three individuals close to the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the School Board is not in receipt of any litigation by disgruntled neighbors.

Elefante, who did not vote, said in a statement, "My expectation was that the Board would take action on the resolution on the agenda with discussion on whether field #13 or field #12 would be selected. I had spent an hour on the phone that day with Dave Horne from [athletic facilities consultant group] Architerra reviewing the potential of this deliberation and ensuring that he came prepared for it.

"Over the past two years, I have facilitated discussions as Board President on issues around Field #2, but I have chosen to recuse myself from Board discussion, and from making any public comments, and have abstained on voting. Since I was serving as Board President, and I am also a neighbor, I felt it was the best decision," she added.

Board Member Joseph Harraka said he was "blindsided" by the vote, which he called an "unfortunate decision which I would have adamantly opposed."

"During the previous Board meeting we seemed to be heading toward striking middle ground and coming up with a win-win compromise. It's not just about sports games, it's about the sense of community spirit and the chance for working people to be part of that. This action will signal to the greater community that we're pandering to a limited contingent, and will undermine the confidence in and credibility of the Board. This action should have been undertaken through the normal course, including soliciting the commentary of the community," he continued.

Concluded Harraka, "I believe the decision is procedurally defective."

Peter Malamis, chairman of the New Hope-Solebury Education Fund said, "After all we've been through with this board, this eleventh-hour approach is disappointing, but not surprising. In fact, it's standard operating procedure and this kind of governance is why the incumbents running for re-election couldn't even make it out of the primary.

"There are a myriad of solutions to the concerns of a handful of neighbors that as a member of the task force that worked with them I know for a fact are acceptable to them -- solutions that don't negatively impact taxpayers, parents, and students like this one does. With all the pressing academic needs of our district, this is the last issue we should be spending time and money on. I look forward to the new board in December that knows better what our priorities should be and how to properly get things done," he added.

Raymond Boccuti, superintendent of schools for the New Hope-Solebury School District, commented, "We want to be the best neighbors we can. I'm also interested in whatever is best for the students, and we need more fields. What's nice is that members of the community are offering to help pay, so no one loses."


That is, of course, if the decision is reversed at the next School Board meeting scheduled for Oct. 21 and open to the public. Should the decision stand, the Athletic Department will be forced to undo a schedule that is approximately 75% complete to accommodate the ban on night games next spring, and the teenagers of New Hope and Solebury will have to find other ways to keep themselves occupied in the evening.

Pair of young men clinging to barrel in Delaware River saved by hero kayakers

Area where duo rescued; clump of trees on R is where 2nd victim clung. (Photo provided by Jeff Vinsosky)

By Charlie Sahner

Police, fire and rescue vehicles including airboats were called out from New Hope, Solebury, Central Bucks, Lambertville at approximately 2:30 p.m. Sunday as two individuals were reported to be floating downstream on a blue barrel on the Delaware River near Stockton.  Police and rescue units took up staggered positions along the Pennsylvania side of the river and on the New Hope-Lambertville free bridge.

Meanwhile, on the raging brown river below, a life and death drama was being played out, according to Jeff Vinosky, 21, of Fairless Hills and Gary Lewis, 21, of Levittown, who say they spotted the barrel while kayaking on the adjacent Delaware and Raritan Canal.

Just as they entered the river near Prallsville Mills to assist the two men they had seen clinging to the barrel for life, one of those in trouble broke away from the improvised float and swam for a nearby strip of land in the river.

The apparent good samaritans said they were able to reach the first victim and guide him ashore to safey, but couldn't fight the roiling, post-flood waters and crosscurrents from a nearby stream to reach the second, who was by then clinging to a tree near the water's edge. They alerted rescue personnel, and an airboat appeared soon thereafter to secure that victim.

According to witnesses, the two individuals in trouble had toppled their canoe upriver.  One fan of the Facebook site "New Hope PA"  posted Sunday that he had seen two individuals "struggling" in a canoe near the Black Bass Hotel at 1:45 p.m.

Emergency personnel on both sides of the river have been mum on the incident, deferring questions to one another and the New Jersey State Police, who say they have no record of the incident.

This reporter's guess would be that since the two "barrel boys" didn't need transportation to a hospital, and since it's not illegal to canoe or ride in a blue plastic barrel immediately after near-flood level waters on the Delaware, no emergency officials felt like filing a comprehensive incident report on a Sunday afternoon.

Nor, apparently, in giving credit where it was also due.

Let's be clear.  The pair of young victims in the river, by all accounts, were exhausted, pale, uncommunicative and generally "shocky," having been immersed in very cold, fast-moving water for more than half an hour.  However poor their judgment was in attempting to preamble about on post-flood waters akin to the chocolate river in Willy Wonka studded with fast-moving logs, let's not blame the victims.

But let's celebrate the heroes:  Gary Lewis and Jeff Vinosky.  These two stuck to the safer canal near Stockton on their afternoon kayak run, but seeing two people clinging for life in the rushing Delaware was enough for them to paddle without thought into harm's way, grabbing one victim and handing him their life vest, and locating and getting help for the second.

These two should receive a public award.

Crime Report: burglary in Solebury, auto break-ins in Doylestown

By Charlie Sahner

Solebury Township Police report that there was a forced entry residential burglary on Old Windy Bush Road on Wednesday, Aug. 18 between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.  The apparent point of entry was a rear exterior door, forced open with a one-inch pry tool, said local authorities.

Police in Solebury are looking for a suspect vehicle described as "a dark green older model Jeep Cherokee occupied by two Hispanic males" that was seen on Old Windy Bush Road on Aug. 17 and 18.  The vehicle and occupants were also spotted on Covered Bridge Road, allegedly looking for a horse farm when confronted by a resident after rapping on the front door and a side window of his home, said Chief of Police Dominick Bellizzie.

Bellizzie advises residents to exercise common sense precautions, like locking doors and making sure to activate alarm systems before leaving home.

Separately, Doylestown Police Chief Stephen White said his township has been "inundated" with auto break-ins for months, with an average 10-15 such incidents per week.

The thieves involved are targeting cellphones, GPS systems, wallets, laptop computers and other small items that might be sold easily to purchase drugs or for other purposes.  The suspects are believed to be in their twenties and living in the area or a neighboring county, according to White.

He advises residents, as cannot be repeated often enough, to lock their vehicles and not leave valuable articles in plain view.