Brothers bilked elderly Cambria Heights man

Two brothers are charged with fraudulently selling the Cambria Heights home out from under a retired New York City correction officer suffering from dementia. The victim’s daughter — a cop — discovered the crime.
One of the brothers is in custody and the other is presently being sought internationally.
Moses Brach, 30, of 182 Lynch Street in Brooklyn, is currently in custody. His brother, Joel Brach, 27, who lived at 137-68 70th Avenue in Flushing, is believed to have fled to Israel. Moses, who is employed at the family-owned 18th Avenue Kosher Fish Store in Borough Park, Brooklyn, was arraigned before Acting Queens County Supreme Court Justice James P. Griffin on a four-count indictment charging him and his brother with second- and third-degree grand larceny and second- and third-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Moses, who, along with his brother, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted, was ordered held on $25,000 bail and to surrender his passport. His next court date is April 14.
Hoesey Walker, 71, sought the aid of Home Energizer, Inc., a real estate brokerage company formerly located at 189-07 Jamaica Avenue in Hollis, in February 2007 to assist him in the purchase of real estate. Joel Brach, an employee of Home Energizer, allegedly handled the transaction involving Walker’s purchase that same month of two properties — one in Brooklyn and the other in Queens — for a total of $1,370,000.
Shortly after the purchase of the two investment properties, Walker’s daughter — New York City Police Officer Kim Walker — discovered that her father exhibited the warning signs of dementia and that he did not understand the financial consequences of purchasing the two investment properties. Officer Walker also discovered, it is alleged, that her father’s primary residence at 114-121 228th Street in Cambria Heights had been sold.
It is further alleged that the Cambria Heights residence was sold in March 2007 to the brothers for $440,000 and that the equity proceeds from the sale of the house - $217,000 - were placed in a Wachovia joint banking account in which the two Brachs and Walker were listed as the account holders. An investigation by the District Attorney’s office determined that the account had allegedly been opened in March 2007 in Joel Brach’s name only and then his brother’s name was added as an account holder, and then finally that Walker’s name was added as an account holder - unbeknownst to him and only after the sale of his residence.
As a result of the sale of the home, it is alleged, a check was made payable to Walker in the amount of $217,000 - which was then deposited into the Wachovia account that the Brachs had established.
The existence of the check and the account came to light when a Wachovia representative contacted Walker and his family due to the suspicious nature of the deposit. At the request of the District Attorney’s Office, the account’s assets have been frozen.
As a result of the alleged fraudulent sale, a mortgage in the amount of $407,537 in the names of the Brachs has been filed against Walker’s property. That mortgage is near foreclosure. Prior to the sale, Walker only had a mortgage of $187,633 on his property.