Source: Johnny Nunez / Getty
Last month, The Breakfast Club co-host DJ Envy and real estate investors Cesar and Jennifer Pina were sued by Anthony Barone and Anthony Martini, who claimed they defrauded them out of $1.5 million over two real estate ventures, the Taylor Company and Flip 2 Dao, neither of which were ever developed according to Hip Hop DX. Barone and Martini claimed Envy and the Pinas took their money but the projects never happened.
“Envy was also accused of purchasing a series of properties in Paterson, New Jersey, undervaluing them, and then fixing-and-flipping them or renting them out,” Hip-Hop DX reported. “Barone and Martini claimed that the trio used the funds to support their extravagant lifestyles and/or to pay off other investors.”
But according to court documents obtained by The Shade Room, Envy is pushing back on the claims filed against him and saying that he too was a victim of the Pinas’ alleged fraudulent dealings and that he was never an employee or representative for Taylor Company or Flip 2 Dao.
In fact, Envy claims that he also lost money dealing with Cesar and Jennifer to the tune of $500,000, which he said he was scammed out of while working with the couple on a separate project. Envy said he was promised a return on his initial investment within one year along with a monthly dividend of about $17,000, but, to date, he said he hasn’t received a dime. Now, he’s asking the court to dismiss the case with prejudice.
From the Shade Room:
He goes on to say that he believes the plaintiffs intentionally included him in the lawsuit solely to exploit the fact that he is a well-known individual and to sensationalize the case.
The documents also include text messages between Anthony Barone and DJ Envy where Barone opened up about the issues he was having with the Pinas. Envy believes that Barone was reaching out to see if he could obtain additional information regarding Cesar and his wife, but Envy explained that he was not involved with the Pina’s with respect to the Taylor Apartments Project and Flip 2 Dao.
Cesar corroborated Envy’s story, agreeing that The Breakfast Club co-host is not, and never was, a member of Flip 2 Dao. He went on to say that Anthony Barone, his wife, and himself are the only members of Flip 2 Dao, however, Flip 2 Dao may have included Mr. Casey’s name in a certain flip deck discussing the business, a move that was done without his knowledge and consent.
Envy, his co-defendants and the plaintiffs are due back in court on September 8.
Be careful who you do business with, folks!
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