Metro

A ruined life gets even worse for Halloran



Queens City Councilman Dan Halloran was struggling with hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt and recovering from a painful divorce when he engaged in an alleged extortion scheme to deliver Republican ballot access to Sen. Malcolm Smith’s bid for mayor, sources said yesterday.

The woman who sold Halloran his Flushing home claims he owes her up to $150,000 on the 2005 transaction.

“Halloran stopped returning my phone calls four months ago,” Christine Comoglio told The Post.

Under the agreement, Halloran signed a promissory note to pay Comoglio the additional $150,000 on top of the mortgage he secured for the property at 157-05 28th Ave.

Halloran also was in arrears on his mortgage. Wells Fargo filed a complaint against the Hallorans in 2010 for missing six monthly payments on the $359,650 debt.

And his ex-wife, Cynthia, had racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt on her American Express credit card. She had entered a settlement agreement to pay off the $24,000 in outstanding debt, records show.

The couple divorced in 2010, records show.

Comoglio, who has been contacted by federal authorities about Halloran’s debt, said she entered into the unusual arrangement with the councilman because he was a friend of her boyfriend.

And Comoglio said she even agreed to cover one of his mortgage payments when he was unable to do so.

In retrospect, the personal loan was a “bad idea,” Comoglio said. She said she filed a complaint against him with the Nassau County Bar Association about his improper dealings.

“When he stopped calling me, I became incredibly disgusted,” she said.

Despite his money woes, Comoglio said Halloran seemed to live well and was able to keep his two cars — including a Jaguar.

Halloran is considered one of the more colorful and controversial New York City council members.

First elected in 2009, Halloran was believed to be the council’s first “heathen” councilman practicing a “neo-pagan,” or Theodist, religion.

He’s also been accused of stirring up anti-Asian sentiment against Asian opponents.

Halloran repeatedly spewed the F-bomb during a Libertarian Party function last fall.

“I’m f–king lonely on the New York City council! I’m a goddamned Libertarian on the council! . . . I’m f–king proud of that!,” he ranted at the Sept. 22 “Liberty Fest” event.

Halloran, a lawyer who recovered from brain surgery last year, boasts law-and-order credentials in his official biography, claiming he served in the NYPD — a claim refuted yesterday by Police Department spokesman Paul Browne, who said Halloran was a police cadet for three months in 1990 before dropping out.

The criminal complaint also charged Halloran with attempting to deliver up to $80,000 in city funds to a sham company in an effort “to obtain money for himself.”

Council Speaker Christine Quinn said stricter spending rules over so-called “member items” prevented Halloran from getting the public funds.

Halloran will be stripped of all committee assignments, and all funding decisions for his district will be made by Quinn’s office in consultation with the Queens delegation chair, according to a statement from Quinn’s office.

Additional reporting by Christina Carrega and David Seifman


ccampanile@nypostlcom