• Exploited Legal Loophole to Stay Rent-Free
• Forged Official Documents to Claim Ownership of the Building

A New York City man has pleaded guilty to fraud after attempting to seize ownership of the famed New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan, bringing to a close a legal battle that dragged on for years.

The scheme relied on an obscure housing law that allowed him to remain at the hotel without paying rent.

Mickey Barreto admitted he falsified property records in an effort to establish legal ownership of the hotel — a move that briefly appeared successful on paper before authorities uncovered the deception.

According to his account, Barreto rented a room at the hotel in 2018 for $200 for a single night. He later demanded a permanent lease, citing a housing regulation that protects single-room occupants in buildings constructed before 1969.

When hotel management rejected his request, he took the matter to housing court, where he was granted “possession” of the room after the hotel failed to appear at a key hearing.

However, Manhattan prosecutors said Barreto went further, uploading a forged deed to a city website that falsely showed the entire property had been transferred into his name.

The hotel is currently owned by a religious association founded by the late South Korean pastor Sun Myung Moon.

Prosecutors said Barreto later tried to collect rent from another hotel occupant and even demanded that the hotel’s bank transfer its accounts into his control.

He was formally evicted in 2024 and charged with multiple felony fraud counts.

Authorities later determined he was unfit to stand trial and ordered him to undergo psychiatric treatment.

Under a plea agreement, Barreto was sentenced to six months in prison — time he has already served — along with five years of probation, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.