A Manhattan man, who once claimed to own the famous New Yorker Hotel, was sentenced to six months in prison on Wednesday after finally conceding that he had no ownership over the historic Art Deco structure.
Mickey Barrett, 49, pleaded guilty to Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Cori Weston for falsifying property documents by asserting ownership of the landmark from May 2019 until September 2023.
The judge required Barrett to affirm that he “intentionally filed a document containing false statements and false information with the intent to deceive the state.” Barrett simply answered “yes” to confirm the plea.
Once the plea was accepted, Barrett was sentenced to six months in prison, but the sentence is suspended for five years following his release.
Since he had effectively completed his sentence during the trial, he won’t have to serve any time in prison.
Barrett became notorious for claiming ownership of the New Yorker Hotel after one night’s stay in June 2018, during which he purportedly expressed a desire to sign a lease under the local rent stabilization law.
When the hotel rejected his offer, its owner, the World Christian United Holy Spirit Association, asked Barrett to leave. However, he subsequently sued in civil court, according to court records.
Prosecutors noted that Barrett and his accomplices managed to reside in the hotel for a year without paying rent before he attempted to assert ownership on May 28, 2019.
He misled city finance department officials into believing that a judge’s decision to return him to the hotel meant he was the rightful owner of the 43-story property, estimated to be worth around $189 million.
Prosecutors highlighted that Barrett demanded rent from one of the hotel’s tenants while posing as its “owner.”
Additionally, he sought registration of the building in his name and requested control over the hotel’s bank account.
Court documents indicated that Barrett even attempted to contact Wyndham, the New York hotel franchisor, to have the franchise transferred to him.
The civil suit concerning his claims was resolved in 2021, based on available records.
Barrett was subsequently indicted by prosecutors in 2024.
In November 2024, he was found unfit to face criminal charges and was ordered by a judge to undergo inpatient psychiatric treatment.
Barrett’s attorney, Brian Hutchinson, described the plea deal as reasonable and mentioned that Barrett aims to move on from this chapter of his life.
“We worked hard to get something that everyone could live with,” Hutchinson shared after the court session.
“Mickey is receiving the treatment he needs and is looking forward to getting on with his life,” his attorney added.
