Quarterbacking from his prison cell, dethroned media mogul Conrad Black settled a legal skirmish with Sotheby’s International Realty over the $10.5 million sale of his Park Avenue apartment.
Sotheby’s had sued Black claiming he stopped payment on a $557,000 commission check for the 2005 sale. Terms of the settlement weren’t disclosed.
Black, 63, through his publicist, said yesterday that the US Attorney in Chicago improperly seized the proceeds from the sale, including funds for Sotheby’s commission.
Black was accused of siphoning money from the Hollinger Media group he once controlled, by buying the company’s corporate apartment for $3 million in 2000 when it was really worth $8.5 million.
He eventually was convicted on charges of fraud and obstruction of justice, and is serving a 61/2-year sentence in a federal prison.