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Man attempts to gain ownership of hotel fraudulently

Call it grand theft hotel -- almost.

A Brooklyn man was arrested on Friday on charges that he fraudulently tried to claim ownership of the SoHo Grand Hotel, one of the premier inns in Lower Manhattan and the scene of oh-so-many gossip items about celebrities in illicit entanglements.

The man, Kouadio Kouassi, 46, filed a deed with the city showing himself as the hotel's owner, but it was not processed because it lacked the required signatures, officials said.

When Kouassi returned to see if he had been declared the rightful owner, a Department of Finance employee believed something suspicious was afoot and notified the city Department of Investigation.

Apparently undaunted and bent on claiming the prized property, Kouassi returned several more times to get his deed processed, officials said.

City investigators contacted the hotel's true owners, the Hartz Group, which said it had never heard of Kouassi and had no intention of giving him the hotel, valued at US$76 million, city records showed.

"We think that since we bought the land, built the hotel and have run it for 12 years that we actually own the hotel," said Ron Simoncini, a spokesman for Hartz. Simoncini eventually stopped laughing and added, "I guess we should take it as a compliment."

The hotel, on West Broadway just below Grand Street, has 363 guest rooms, including penthouse loft suites with private outdoor terraces, at nightly rates starting at US$399. In the rooms are iPods with Bose Sound Docks, lotions by Malin & Goetz and Frette bathrobes and bedding.

Kouassi was charged with attempted grand larceny and offering a false instrument for filing. Authorities said he was in custody on Friday night and had not yet hired a lawyer.

If convicted, he will face up to 15 years in jail.

"This defendant foolishly thought he had engineered a clever and brash ruse to gain ownership of a significant commercial property," said Rose Gill Hearn, the city investigations commissioner, in a statement.

"He may now find himself sleeping in less glamorous accommodations," he said.
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