Former Orange County prosecutor allegedly accepted $48,000 in bribes to investigate case

A retired Orange County court judge and former Orange County assistant district attorney is now at the center of bribery allegations against a family connected to an unsolved murder case in Rockland County.

The allegations are laid out in court documents obtained by News 12, which allege that former prosecutor Stewart Rosenwasser targeted Eman and Martin Soudani after Moutz “Marty” Soudani accused his sister and nephew of stealing $1.6 million from him in a cryptocurrency scam and paid Rosenwasser to investigate.

Martin Soudani was ultimately the only one charged in 2023. He pleaded guilty and repaid his uncle nearly $500,000 before being sentenced to one to seven years in prison in Orange County court.

In August, mother and son each filed a lawsuit seeking damages, the first step in a lawsuit against Rosenwasser, Orange County, Orange County District Attorney Dave Hoovler and Orange County Assistant District Attorney Christopher Borek, after claiming to have discovered personal text messages between Rosenwasser and Moutz Soudani during the investigation, as well as a paper trail of six payments totaling $48,100 marked as “loans” to Rosenwasser.

In one alleged text exchange, Moutz allegedly wrote to Soudani Rosenwasser that he made him “extremely happy.” Rosenwasser allegedly wrote to Soudani that he would “always protect” and “help” him. In another alleged exchange, Soudani allegedly wrote to Rosenwasser that he “destroyed everything that was bad on the phone.”

Court records show that in the 1990s, when Rosenwasser was still a private attorney, he represented Moutz Soudani in several real estate deals and was paid $15,000 three days after his nephew returned some of the stolen funds.

The Soudanis claim that Rosenwasser's investigation led to Eman Soudani's “false arrest and detention,” downplayed allegations of abuse, ignored evidence of further criminal activity, and concealed bribes. They claim that Hoovler and Borek, who tried the case in court, showed “blind trust” in Rosenwasser and negligently caused an unjustified prosecution.

Orange County District Attorney Rick Golden responded, “As it is county law, I have requested that each of the plaintiffs be questioned by my attorneys about their allegations and that they give their answers under oath. Until I have reviewed the plaintiffs' sworn statements, I will have no further comment.”

The Soudani family has made headlines before.

Marty's wife Helen was killed in an unsolved murder at the couple's Rockland County restaurant in 1977.

His sister Eman accuses him of incest and rape in another lawsuit and claims that Rosenwasser, the district attorney and the prosecutor interfered in a “significant family dispute.”

News 12 was unable to reach Rosenwasser.

District Attorney Dave Hoovler said in a statement that the allegations “relate solely and exclusively to Judge Rosenwasser and a single case. If true, he has brought shame to the justice system, the people he worked with and the citizens of Orange County.”

Rosenwasser suddenly resigned from his post as Orange County district attorney in June. According to an official source, he is also being investigated for tax evasion.

The Soudani plan to sue for $22.5 million.