By: E&P Staff Former Conrad Black lieutenant and Chicago Sun-Times Publisher F. David Radler is suing Donald Trump for allegedly reneging on a deal to sell him a discounted condominium in the new tower built on the old site of the tabloid's offices.
Radler engineered what was originally to be a joint venture between the Sun-Times parent company and Trump to build a 92-story hotel and condo tower on the Chicago riverfront site. Trump later bought out the stake of the parent, Hollinger International Inc.
In the suit filed in Cook County (Ill.) Circuit Court last month, Radler alleges he was among a group of 40 "friends and family" who were promised the opportunity to buy a unit in the Trump International Hotel & Tower at a 10% discount, and with a much lower deposit required.
Radler says he bought a condo and two parking spaces for $1.7 million, according to Crain's Chicago Business, which first reported on the lawsuit. Also suing Trump are two of Radler's daughters, who bought a condo and parking space for $688,000.
Last summer, Trump cancelled the insider deals, and notified members that the price for them would be closer to the units' market value.
Radler was the prosecution's star witness in last year's federal fraud trial of Conrad Black and three other top executives accused of looting Hollinger International, now known as Sun-Times Media Group. Radler pleaded guilty to a single count of mail fraud in the case, and was sentenced to 29 months in prison and a $250,000 fine. He is to start his prison sentence Feb. 25. Black was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison, and is to report to jail March 5.
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