DA: Great Neck Attorney Stole $470K From Clients, Former Family Member

An attorney with offices in Great Neck was arrested Wednesday for stealing more than $470,000 by defrauding a Manhasset couple that was selling their home and by securing a loan on a property he did not own by pretending to be part owner of his former mother-in-law’s business, according to Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas.

Daniel Spitalnic, 38, of Whitestone, Queens, was arraigned on two separate cases and was charged with three counts of second degree grand larceny, second degree criminal possession of a forged instrument and first degree offering a false instrument for filing.

“This attorney allegedly enriched himself at the expense of his clients and mortgaged a property that belonged to his former mother-in-law’s corporation,” Singas said in a press release.

In the first case, the attorney, who was admitted to the bar in 2003, allegedly stole a $171,500 down payment pending the closing of a home from a family he represented that was selling a residence in Manhasset.

The closing of the property was held on Sept. 8, but the escrow money, and $7,460 due to a title insurance company, were never received by the family, the DA says. The $7,460 did not clear due to insufficient funds in the escrow account, according to the report.

In the second case, Spitalnic obtained a $300,000 loan secured by a mortgage on a commercial property in Great Neck that belonged to his former mother-in-law’s corporation by falsely representing himself as part owner of the company, the DA says.

He allegedly used this money for personal use such as rent, travel, entertainment, food and other expenses.

According to the DA, the former mother-in-law found out about Spitalnic’s actions in May when she went to pay real estate taxes and learned that the taxes were already paid by a title company.

She confronted Spitalnic, who said he took out the mortgage because he owed money and told her that she would be paid back, the DA says. He then allegedly gave her a forged Satisfaction of Mortgage document that claimed the loan had been satisfied.

“Stealing is wrong, but for an attorney to allegedly defraud a former family member and client is particularly troubling,” Singas said in a press release.

Spitalnic, who was arrested at his home on Wednesday, faces 5 to 15 years in prison if convicted of the top charge. Bail for the two cases was set at $30,000 bond or cash.

Spitalnic is due back in court on Friday.

Image via NCDA