Politics

Court documents: Menendez donor leased oceanfront condo for alleged prostitute

David Martosko Executive Editor
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Court records show that Salomon Melgen, the longtime Democratic donor linked to New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, provided an oceanfront condominium to a Ukranian model at the center of prostitution allegations lodged against both men.

The Palm Beach Post reported Sunday that Melgen arranged for Svitlana Buchyk to occupy a condo he leased for her on Singer Island near Palm Beach, Florida in 2009. (RELATED SLIDESHOW: Meet one of Bob Menendez’s alleged call girls)

Melgen’s private jet carried Sen. Menendez to the Dominican Republic on at least three occasions for what an anonymous whistle-blower has alleged were a series of sex parties with prostitutes.

The whistle-blower’s documents, published online in January and first reported by The Daily Caller, included a a list of “some prostitutes involved,” including “Svetlana B. (Sveta).” (RELATED: Emails show FBI investigating Menendez)

The Florida newspaper found court records showing that the The Condominium Association of Aquarius sued the owner of a condo unit because Buchyk was living there as a long-term visitor. The owner then filed a cross-complaint against Melgen, who leased the residence.

Condo rules prohibited visitors for more than two weeks without the association’s approval. Buchyk allegedly lived there for most of 2009.

Melgen claimed in court filings that the condo’s owner knew he leased the residence specifically for Buchyk to live in.

“Plaintiff knew and understood,” his attorney argued, “that Buchyk would reside in the premises, that this was the purpose of the lease and approval by the homeowners association was required, yet failed to obtain that approval and allowed the association to harass Melgen and Buchyk.”

Buchyk claimed the condo association’s manager sexually harassed her with lewd comments, and by attempting to look under her dress. The manager, Carlos Simoes, told the Palm beach Post that the accusations were “crazy stuff — none of that happened.”

“She was a young, attractive lady,” Simoes told Post columnist Frank Cerabino in a piece published Tuesday. “Most of the units in the building are occupied by older adults.”

“She was a guest and her time limit was over. If she was going to stay, we needed the proper documentation. She was asked to fill them out, and she didn’t want to be bothered.”

Buchyk is just one of the alleged prostitutes named in the online allegations against Menendez and Melgen. The cache of documents published in January mention the names of six women, adding that two additional prostitutes were not named because they were underage girls. (RELATED: Dominican prostitute says Menendez “likes the youngest and newest girls”)

In addition, TheDC spoke with two other women in November who claimed they were paid to have sex with Menendez at Melgen’s home at the Cassa de Campo resort in the Dominican Republic.

Buchyk received traffic tickets in 2010 and 2011, giving police Melgen’s North Palm Beach home address as her residence.

She was also cited by police in 2009 for driving a Chevrolet with tinted windows that were too dark. She listed the business address of Melgen’s eye clinic on the ticket. That location was the subject of an FBI raid in late January that was reportedly related to a Medicare fraud case.

Menendez has admitted intervening on Melgen’s behalf with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services in 2009 and again in 2011, in relation to an $8.9 million Medicare billing dispute.

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