(Bloomberg) -- Luxury real estate brokers Tal and Oren Alexander failed to win release from custody before their trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, despite contrasting their case with those of rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, Jeffrey Epstein confidante Ghislaine Maxwell and others accused of the same crime.
US District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan on Wednesday rejected arguments by lawyers for Tal, Oren and another brother, Alon Alexander seeking to have them freed on a more than $115 million bail package backed by their families’ assets. Though they were charged in New York last month with a yearslong conspiracy to “drug, sexually assault and rape dozens of victims,” the Alexanders were arrested in Miami and have been in custody there.
Caproni ruled that the brothers were both flight risks and dangers to their community, given the strong evidence backing the allegations against them. She also expressed concern about the inequality of allowing wealthy defendants to prepare for trial in private residences while poor ones do so behind bars.
Bail was always a longshot for the Alexanders, as sex-trafficking is a federal crime that carries a presumption of pre-trial detention for the accused. Combs, who was arrested in September, was denied bail despite offering a $50 million bond secured by his $48 million Miami home.
A federal magistrate judge in Miami previously denied the Alexander brothers bail as well, even after they offered to post a bond of “any amount,” backed by their real estate holdings and those of their parents, who sat in the front row of the courtroom on Wednesday. Tal’s specific offer of a $115 million bond was also rejected. They were asking Caproni to reconsider those rulings by additionally offering to submit to house arrest under round-the-clock private security.
Tal, 38, and his younger twins Oren and Alon, both 37, have yet to enter a plea in the case. But they have said in court filings that they will fight the charges and prove their innocence at trial. The brothers didn’t attend Wednesday’s hearing. Though Caproni last week denied a request by Tal and Alon to stay in Miami, they have not yet been sent to New York.
The allegations against the brothers bear a striking resemblance to those against Combs. In both cases, the government alleges the defendants used their wealth and power to lure victims, often through lavish parties and events.
But Tal’s lawyers pointed out that Combs had been charged with obstruction of justice in addition to sex-trafficking for allegedly trying to coerce witnesses. Moreover, the rap mogul had “substance abuse and anger issues,” they said. Unlike the Alexanders, Combs also had a private plane that made him more of a flight risk.
Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. Like the Alexander brothers, he claims the alleged sexual assaults were consensual encounters. Marc Agnifilo, a lawyer for Combs, declined to comment.
Tal’s team likewise argued that Maxwell, who was also denied bail, was a greater flight risk than the brothers because she possessed multiple foreign citizenships. Epstein was denied bail as well despite offering a bond of at least $100 million. He later died by suicide in his jail cell while awaiting trial. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of recruiting underage girls for abuse by Epstein and subsequently sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Prosecutors cited the Combs, Epstein and Maxwell cases to urge Caproni to reject the Alexanders’ “efforts to use money and privilege to receive special treatment in the justice system.”
The government also argued that the Alexanders were flight risks. It was largely to address this concern that their lawyers presented a home detention plan that would be overseen by former members of federal law enforcement. The plan included installing alarms, sensors and video cameras. The Alexanders’ phones would be monitored and they would be escorted to all medical appointments or court appearances.
The government said allowing such an arrangement would violate the Constitution’s guarantee of equal treatment under the law for the wealthy and poor alike. For their part, the Alexanders argued that their wealth is precisely the reason the government is calling them flight risks who need to be detained.
Having the defendants released on bail to a private residence “is not a benefit to the rich, it’s a benefit to due process,” Richard Klugh, a lawyer for Oren Alexander, told the judge.
“He is not asking for a break because he’s rich, he’s asking for a chance to defend himself,” he said.
The highest bond set for a US defendant is believed to be the $3 billion a Texas judge ordered during the 2013 murder trial of real estate heir Robert Durst, who had previously skipped bail. An appeals court later slashed the amount to $450,000.
Big packages have become common in white-collar cases. FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried was released on a $250 million bond in December 2022, which was later revoked after he was accused of leaking documents in an attempt to discredit a government witness. Galleon Group LLC’s Raj Rajaratnam was freed on $100 million bond in 2009 and junk bond king Michael Milken faced a quarter-billion dollar demand in 1989. Bernie Madoff’s bond was set at $10 million and he struggled to meet it, unable to find four people to co-sign for him.
(Updates with decison on bail and details from court hearing.)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Catch all the Business News , Corporate news , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.