Dreier's Hamptons homes, NY flat to be auctioned

By Phil Wahba

NEW YORK, May 28 (Reuters) - The luxury Manhattan apartment and two Hamptons beach homes of convicted lawyer Marc Dreier will be auctioned off in the coming weeks, according to a real estate website, as part of an effort to reimburse defrauded customers.

Dreier, a prominent New York lawyer, pleaded guilty earlier in May to criminal charges of running a $400 million investment fraud involving fake promissory notes.

Dreier's two neighboring oceanfront homes in Southampton, New York, a beach community frequented by New York City's wealthy, are being auctioned on-site on June 17, while his 3,000 square-foot Manhattan apartment will be auctioned at federal bankruptcy court in New York on July 21, according to the website of real estate auctioneer David R. Maltz & Co Inc.

Dreier's New York City apartment, where he is under house arrest and armed guard pending his sentencing July 13, is located on Manhattan's East Side and includes a large outdoor terrace, four bedrooms and five bathrooms.

Richard Maltz, a broker, said he could not say what price the apartment might command, but an apartment of similar size two floors below Dreier's was listed for $15.3 million on Thursday on real estate listings website streeteasy.com.

U.S. prosecutors are seeking about $700 million in forfeiture from Dreier, a Harvard educated lawyer who once headed the 250-attorney firm Dreier LLP. (Reporting by Phil Wahba; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)