Former HFZ Capital Group executive Nir Meir is out of jail after spending more than a year detained on Rikers Island.
Meir was released on a $1 million fully secured bail bond. Meir will be in 24-hour home confinement and will wear two ankle monitors, one from the New York City Sheriff and the other from his bail bond agency, according to his attorney, Oliver Storch.
“We are elated that Mr. Meir can now finally and reasonably review the voluminous discovery with counsel and fight the charges in a meaningful way,” said Storch in a statement.
Meir will live in an undisclosed residence in New York City. He will only be permitted to leave his home for court appearances and pre-approved attorney visits. On these visits, Meir will be escorted by a bail bond agent, Storch said.
It is unclear who is paying for Meir’s residence. Meir previously claimed to be broke with no significant assets to his name.
Prosecutors allege Meir was the mastermind of an $86 million fraud scheme that involved moving money out of accounts designated for HFZ Capital Group projects, resulting in shortfalls. At the center of the allegations is the XI, a condo development on Manhattan’s High Line. The D.A.’s office also alleges Meir defrauded the city out of $15 million in taxes.
Meir has pleaded not guilty and maintains his innocence, Storch said.
Storch had tried to reduce Meir’s bail — $5 million cash bail, $7.5 million insurance bond and $10 million partially secured bond — arguing that what the judge initially set was too high. The attorney claimed Meir was not a flight risk.
In February, Judge Ann Thompson agreed that Meir’s initial bail was “excessive” but largely denied Meir’s request to reduce it below $1 million.
Instead of appealing the decision, Storch said he proposed an “unprecedented and extraordinarily restrictive, compelling bail package which reasonably addressed the DA Office’s and court’s flight risk concerns.”
The D.A.’s office agreed to reduce the bail amount on the condition that Meir wear two separate ankle monitors and remain in home confinement.
In the initial indictment, the D.A.’s office also alleged the XI’s contractor, Omnibuild, and its CEO John Mingione worked with Meir to inflate costs to the lender. Omnibuild and Mingione have pleaded not guilty and claim to be victims of Meir and HFZ’s bad acts.
The D.A.’s office recently agreed to pursue the case against Omnibuild and Mingione separately from Meir.
“We are very pleased with the D.A.’s office agreeing to finally separate Nir and HFZ from our case,” said a spokesperson for Omnibuild and Mingione. “We were the first people to warn the D.A.’s office about Nir’s fraudulent acts and were victims of his theft. Omnibuild and John are absolutely innocent and this decision is a significant step forward in our fight to being fully exonerated.”
Meir was fired from HFZ in late 2020. He spent the next two years fighting lawsuits while dropping millions of dollars on gold, strip clubs, expensive wine and hotel stays, in addition to a $150,000-a-month rental in Miami Beach. Despite his large expenditures, Meir claimed he was broke and the money came from his ex-wife Ranee Bartolacci.
Meir filed for personal bankruptcy in February 2024 and was ultimately arrested that same month at the 1 Hotel South Beach residences. Meir was extradited to New York City and subsequently held in Rikers.
Read more
Nir Meir’s wife breaks her silence
Judge denies Nir Meir’s pleas for drastic bail reduction
Behind the unraveling of Nir Meir
