Boston firm charged in real estate investment fraud

A Boston investment firm is being charged with fraudulent sales of real estate investments to senior citizens. Secretary of the Commonwealth William F. Galvin filed a complaint today against Cabot Investment Properties, along with its principals Carlton P. Cabot and Timothy J. Kroll. Mr. Galvin charged that the tenancy-in-common investments to elderly investors were fraudulent. According to the administrative complaint, Massachusetts residents who were looking for a means of retirement income invested more than $5 million in eight of the TICs. The defendants were also charged with siphoning $9 million into their personal bank accounts to use for a “lavish lifestyle in Manhattan.” The complaint goes on to say that Mr. Cabot and Mr. Kroll “artfully fabricated an air of prominence by associating themselves with the established names of the New England Cabot family as well as with the bona fide real estate firm known as Cabot Properties.” The complaint said Mr. Cabot's mother married into the Cabot family, and though there is no connection to the real estate firm, used the connection for a better image. Attempts to contact Mr. Cabot and Mr. Kroll for comment were unsuccessful. The company's website and phone numbers are inactive.