For more than 30 years, Dr. Daniel Kenigsberg has been the proud steward of a breathtaking family property in Connecticut’s Sky Top Terrace, a peaceful hilltop landscape that has belonged to the Kenigsberg family for over three decades. The land was passed down through generations, cherished not for its monetary value, but for its history, legacy, and emotional significance.
So when Daniel received a phone call from a friend telling him that heavy construction equipment was moving onto his property, he was stunned. He had never sold the parcel, never signed ownership over, and never even been contacted about a purchase.
“I said, ‘I own that, and I never sold it.’ I was shocked,” he later told CT Insider.
Driven by disbelief, Dr. Kenigsberg rushed to the site, where the shock turned to anger and concern—his friend was right. A massive luxury home, estimated at 4,000 square feet, was already underway on the land his family had owned for decades. It was clear this wasn’t a simple misunderstanding. Something deeply wrong had happened.
According to official public records, the parcel had been sold in October 2022 to 51 Sky Top Partners LLC for $350,000, facilitated through a complex chain of real-estate transactions. The problem? The sale documents appear to include a forged power-of-attorney signed by someone impersonating Daniel from Johannesburg, suggesting identity theft, forgery, and negligent oversight by real-estate professionals.
Even more startling, once the mansion was fully constructed, it was listed for sale on Coldwell Banker in March 2023 for $1,475,000, marketed as a luxury real-estate opportunity—unaware, at least initially, that the rightful landowner never authorized the sale.
Daniel has since filed a lawsuit on nine legal counts, including:
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Criminal trespass
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Statutory property theft
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Unfair trade practices
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Land trespassing violations
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Connecticut real-estate negligence claims
In the lawsuit, Dr. Kenigsberg seeks:
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To void the fraudulent land sale
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To force defendants to remove all structures and building materials
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To restore the land to its original condition
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To award $2 million in damages
“I’m angry that so many people were so negligent that this could happen,” he said. “It’s more than obnoxious—it’s offensive and wrong.”
Fairfield Police Lieutenant Michael Paris confirmed that a criminal investigation is actively underway, specifically examining who received the bank transfer funds from the buyers.
“It’s still under investigation at this point,” Paris stated.
“It was a bank account transfer.”
Interestingly, 51 Sky Top Partners LLC also released a statement claiming they too were victims of the scheme, saying:
“We learned to our shock and dismay that Kenigsberg had not, in fact, sold the property to us. A third-party had impersonated Kenigsberg and—through the carelessness and neglect of the various real-estate professionals—managed to list, market, and sell the property without anyone catching on.”
Whether Daniel or the buyers recover fully, one thing remains certain: this story has become a powerful real-world warning about real-estate identity theft, forged legal documents, third-party impersonation scams, property fraud lawsuits, and the dangers of negligence in high-value land transactions.
A photo may go viral for love—but a forged signature can change lives for all the wrong reasons.
