By Hank Russell
A Kings Point man has been found guilty of deed theft for forging documents to falsely obtain ownership of two Harlem brownstones worth over $4 million.
In 2012, Joseph Makhani used fraudulent deeds, other false documents, and shell companies to steal the brownstone located at 107 West 118th Street from an elderly and vulnerable homeowner. In a 2012 filing used to further his scheme, a corporation that he controlled claimed to have paid only $10 for the brownstone.
In a mortgage application Makhani filed, he falsely claimed that he paid $975,000 for the brownstone in order to obtain a $650,000 construction loan for renovations. He then refinanced and received a $1.2 million long-term mortgage loan on the property. Makhani also submitted a forged application to the New York Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) in order to convert the building into market-rate apartment rentals.
From 2016 to 2023, Makhani rented out each unit for as much as $3,400 per month, allowing him to collect a monthly rent income of more than $12,000. He was able to amass this wealth while the elderly owner of the brownstone never received any money from him. In fact, the true owner of the brownstone was forced to live in a homeless shelter for years.
The value of the stolen home in 2023 was approximately $2.9 million.
In 2012, Makhani used fraudulent deeds and other false documents to criminally possess another brownstone located at 135 West 131st Street. Before Makhani took over the residence, the last true deed recorded on this property was dated in 1975 in the name of an elderly homeowner who died soon after.
Around that same year, Makhani approached one of the building’s tenants and told them that he had purchased the brownstone. He secured the tenant’s signature by pretending to offer him a job. Makhani then filed a fraudulent deed, misrepresenting the tenant as the owner of the building to unlawfully transfer the property to a company he controlled.
In 2013, Makhani attempted to evict the tenants of the brownstone and filed a lawsuit against the tenants on behalf of his company. During eviction proceedings, Makhani’s ownership of the brownstone and the deed were questioned. He then filed a new fraudulent deed that claimed the heirs of the last recorded owner transferred the property to his company.
The stolen home was valued at approximately $1.8 million in 2018.
The evidence at trial showed that Makhani orchestrated fraudulent civil lawsuits as a part of his scheme to obtain the two stolen properties.
On July 1, 2026, Makhani, 63, was found guilty of two counts of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the First Degree and one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree. He was remanded into custody and will return to court for sentencing on July 28, 2026 in front of New York State Supreme Court Judge Michele Rodney. Makhani faces a maximum sentence of eight-and-one-third to 25 years in prison on the top count.
“Joseph Makhani maliciously targeted an elderly homeowner and shamelessly attempted to evict long-time tenants in a heartless scheme to steal two homes that never belonged to him in the first place,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “[The] conviction [on July 1] should serve as a warning to all deed thieves: my office will hold you accountable to the full extent of the law. I will continue to do everything in my power to combat deed theft and keep New Yorkers in their homes.”
Tanya Hobson-Williams, a New York attorney who has represented victims of deed theft and real estate fraud, said the verdict is more than just property. “It is about protecting New Yorkers from one of the most devastating forms of property crime,” she said. “When someone’s deed is stolen, they can lose their home, their life’s savings and, in the worst cases, their dignity and stability. In this case, a homeowner was literally driven into homelessness. That should never happen.”
Hobson-Williams said the conviction underscores the growing need for homeowners — particularly seniors and families who have owned property for decades — to create estate plans, to monitor their property records and seek immediate legal assistance if ownership documents appear to have been altered.
“Deed theft often happens quietly, but its consequences are catastrophic,” she said. “This case demonstrates that perpetrators can and will be held accountable.”