A federal judge this week delayed the upcoming trial of Main Line businessman Joseph LaForte until May 3, 2021, citing concerns over Covid19.
LaForte, who helped run Par Funding in Old City Philadelphia, is facing trial on weapons charges after FBI agents discovered a number of guns during a search of his Main Line home last Summer as part of a widespread investigation into Par Funding.
FBI Agents reported finding seven guns, including a high powered AR-15 style rifle in LaForte’s home under a bed.
LaForte is a twice convicted felon and not permitted to own or possess guns.
In the ruling, the judge cited the Eastern District’s Chief Judge’s decision concerning upcoming trials in the midst of the ongoing Covid19 pandemic.
The Court declared:
“In light of the circumstances regarding the COVID-19 outbreak in this district outlined above and in the Court’s prior Standing Orders, the Court finds the ends of justice served by granting a continuance outweigh the best interest of the public and each defendant in a speedy trial.
Existing conditions with respect to the COVID-19 outbreak in this district impede the Court’s ability to obtain an adequate complement of trial jurors at this time and impact the ability of Court personnel, counsel, defendants, and other case participants to be present during trial.
Given current conditions as well as the large number of people that must be assembled to conduct a jury trial, the Court has determined it is not possible to conduct jury trials safely and in accordance with available public health guidance at this time.
In these circumstances, and given the seriousness of the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak in this district, failure to postpone jury trials through February 15, 2021, would be likely to make the continuation of such trials impossible or result in a miscarriage of justice.
Accordingly, the additional time period from January 15, 2021, through February 15, 2021, shall be excluded under the Speedy Trial Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(7)(A), for all criminal cases impacted by this trial continuance. This period of exclusion is in addition to the period of exclusion previously granted for the time period from March 13, 2020, through January 15, 2021.
The Court may extend the period of exclusion by further order as circumstances may warrant, and the presiding judge in any criminal case for which trial is continued under this Standing Order may make any additional findings and exclude additional time, as necessary and appropriate, regarding the scheduling of any new date for trial.
Any motion by a criminal defendant seeking an exception to this Standing Order for the purpose of exercising the defendant’s speedy trial rights shall be referred to the Chief Judge.
This Court further finds that, because of the restrictions on public movement and interactions at the present time identified by the Chief Judge, a continuance of the present trial date is required to allow adequate preparation by the parties for pretrial proceedings and for the trial.
For all of these reasons, the ends of justice served by granting a continuance outweigh the best interest of the public and the defendant in a speedy trial. This Court accordingly ORDERS that the trial in this matter is continued to Monday, May 3, 2021.
LaForte was released on bail last Fall on federal weapons charges after several delays tied to the posting of his $2.5 million bail.
A delay in formalizing appraisals on six different properties posted by family and friends held up LaForte’s release. Those appraisals were made official and the judge ordered LaForte released.
LaForte was ordered held without bail by a judge in July. He was in the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia facing trial on weapons charges.
Laforte was ordered to surrender his passport and prohibited from obtaining or possessing any firearms. He was released after family members and friends posted six properties across the area, including Staten Island New York.
The Old City businessman was ordered confined to his luxurious Haverford home along with electronic monitoring by the federal probation departmentt. He’s allowed to leave the home with permission to go to work, his lawyers’ offices, his doctor or other court approved locations.
The intriguing and widespread federal investigation of LaForte and Par Funding started going public in July when the feds raided Par Funding, his homes and other locations. The twice convicted felon allegedly ran the Old City lending firm with his wife Lisa. Their company attracted high end investors from Florida to Philly.
It’s a tale of cash, expensive homes, even an $8 million dollar private jet along with allegations by federal authorities of handing out loans sometimes at 400% interest.
The 49 year old LaForte, who lives in multi-million dollar homes in Jupiter, Florida, Haverford, PA and upstate Pennsylvania, was arrested in July at his $2.5 million Haverford mansion on weapons charges. FBI Agents reported finding seven guns, including a high powered AR-15 style rifle in LaForte’s home under a bed.
LaForte, according to court documents, is a twice convicted felon. His first conviction in New York State involved a $14 million financial scam with his brother, James LaForte, of Staten Island in 2006. He was later charged in a 2009 federal off shore gambling investigation out of the FBI’s Newark, N.J. office. His brother was charged in a separate investigation. Joseph served three and half years in prison.
Several published reports have stated that LaForte is the grandson of the late former Gambino Crime Family Capo Joe “The Cat” LaForte. His brother James has been described in published reports as an associate of the Gambino Crime Family.
LaForte was immediately ordered held at the federal detention center on Arch Street. He was denied bail pending trial at a hearing after federal prosecutors called LaForte “a flight risk” and “a danger to the community”.
LaForte’s lawyers James Froccaro Jr. and Michael Engle, contested the government’s request, saying the weapons were legally purchased by LaForte’s wife after she was robbed at knifepoint outside her business. They asked the judge to release LaForte on house arrest and offered to post four properties belonging to friends. However, the judge ordered LaForte held without bail until his trial.
Froccaro argued his client was not trying to flee, had no passport and had all his assets frozen by federal investigators. Agents seized $2.5 million in cash, $10 million in bank accounts, his jet and properties.
Although there has been no mention of organized crime in this weapons case or in an ongoing FBI criminal investigation/SEC investigation of LaForte’s business, Par Funding, the arresting agent is Robert Lythgoe. He is assigned to the Philadelphia FBI Field Office, specifically “Squad One”, which normally investigates organized crime and gang activity.
The case agent assigned to the criminal investigation, John Murray, is also assigned to Squad One.
FBI Agents raided LaForte’s Haverford home and former Par Funding business location on Third Street in Old City Philadelphia in July as part of an ongoing undercover FBI investigation. Few details have been released on that investigation. The FBI refused comment on the probe.
Those FBI raids came two weeks after the Securities and Exchange Commission sued LaForte and his wife, Lisa McElhorne, in federal court in Miami along with several other people and entities for allegedly bilking over 1,200 investors who put their money into Par Funding. The firm allegedly gave high interest loans to small businesses and business owners.
No charges have been filed by the FBI in the Par Funding investigation.
The SEC claims the LaForte and others lied to investors and hid his prior criminal convictions through several aliases used by LaForte. The SEC also claimed that Par Funding threatened borrowers who failed to pay up.
In court documents filed by federal prosecutors on the weapons case, FBI agents alleged that LaForte made threats of violence “in order to do business”
The FBI said LaForte allegedly threatened one merchant, telling the merchant he would “blow our house up.”
LaForte allegedly threatened another merchant by asking if she “ever heard of cement shoes.” He later allegedly said to the same woman that one day she would start her car engine and “poof” if she didn’t pay LaForte.
Another merchant told the FBI, according to court papers, that LaForte threatened to take away all the merchants assets for failure to make a loan repayment. He allegedly said “try to f…… stop me, I’ll have you and your son killed.”
Several merchants also told the FBI that if they missed loan payments a “large muscular man appeared uninvited at their place of business, threatened them with physical harm and demanded money for LaForte and his company.”
The FBI said in court papers they could not determine if any of the threats were carried through to fruition.
Court papers appear to suggest FBI agents went undercover posing as potential investors in Par Funding during their investigation.
The FBI also claimed LaForte has allegedly been trying to “move his monies to offshore bank accounts to avoid detection by investigators.”
LaForte allegedly had several conversations with undercover FBI employees about “using his personal jet to fly bulk currency to Nevis in order to obtain citizenship and place his monies in secret bank accounts.” The jet was recently seized by federal authorities.
The FBI also released a recorded conversation involving LaForte and undercover FBI employees that was taped recorded in late July 2020 regarding weapons and shooting them at his upstate Pennsylvania home.
LaForte: “ya know I’ve got rifles”
LaForte: “I’ve got AR-15s. What do you want bro, come on.”
LaForte: ” We’ve got everything. AR-15s….We’ve got uh, sawed off shotguns, rifles. We’ve got I don’t know, what do you want?”
LaForte: “We’ve got gun rooms up there, yea.”
LaForte is represented by attornies Michael Engle in Philadelphia and James Froccaro Jr, out of Port Washington, New York along with well known Philadelphia Attorney Brian McMonagle who’s represented Bill Cosby and Philly rapper Meek Mill in recent years.
