New Jersey “Gold Coast” developer Fred Daibes has pleaded guilty to taking part in an insider loan scam at Mariner’s Bank, the financial institution that he founded and where he served as chairman of the board of directors.
Daibes, the Edgewater-based developer whose glitzy projects have transformed the Hudson River waterfront, appeared in U.S. District Court by Zoom on Thursday and pleaded guilty to one count of concealing a $1.8 million bank loan made to him.
In exchange for the guilty plea, the government agreed to drop the remaining 13 counts in the indictment and won’t seek a prison term when Daibes appears before U.S. District Court Judge Susan D. Wigenton on Sept. 7.
Daibes will be sentenced to probation, according to the plea agreement.
“Mr. Daibes is satisfied with the plea agreement in this case, which calls for a sentence of probation, and the dismissal of 13 of the 14 charges that were pending against him,” his attorney, Lawrence S. Lustberg, said in a statement. “More than anything else, Fred is very happy that he is putting this matter, which has gone on for so many years, behind him.”
Daibes’ longtime business partner, James Demetrakis, pleaded guilty in 2019 to his role in the Mariner’s Bank scandal. Demetrakis admitted in federal court that he received two loans from Mariner’s Bank — one for $1.8 million, the other for $2.6 million — and then gave the money to Daibes.
“Mr. Daibes very much regrets that he allowed the loan…
