Cops have arrested a fast-talking California man they say negotiated to buy Tommy Mottola’s $20 million upstate mansion and a $1 million Manhattan restaurant – but never ponied up the cash.
Keith Crump, 31, was arrested Monday at a New Jersey motel on a warrant for a parole violation in California, police said.
But New Jersey cops and the New York Special Frauds Unit cops swooped down on Crump as part of an investigation into a string of wacky business dealings on the New York side of the Hudson.
For starters, Crump made a deal with an Upper West Side restaurant owner to buy the Lincoln Center eatery, Cafe La Fenice, cops said.
Crump agreed to pay $1.1 million for the restaurant, cops said. But the owner, Gamal Elsayed Hassanin, turned over the property to Crump before he’d received a penny.
Crump had the name changed to Bow Ties, printed up a new menu, and started churning out the chops and pasta and pocketing the proceeds, cops said.
Hassanin told cops he was wowed by the smooth-talking Crump, who said he was a California rap producer and never went anywhere without a pair of burly bodyguards and an entourage of 10 to 20 hangers-on.
Police said Crump ran the restaurant for about two weeks – while Hassanin waited for his money.
Finally, Hassanin went to cops. When the restaurant remained shuttered for a couple days and it appeared Crump had vanished, police told Hassanin he was the legal owner and should move back in.
“I never got any money,” Hassanin said.
“He told me he was a record producer from California. He threw a couple parties here. He used the restaurant as his base. He ran the place for two weeks, he didn’t pay anybody and he ran up bills.”
Meanwhile, police said Crump made three trips to tony Bedford Hills to tour the estate of bona-fide music honcho Tommy Mottola.
Real-estate broker Sally Siano said neither the Sony boss nor his wife, Mexican songstress Thalia, were present when Crump and his entourage blew through the house.
Siano said Crump agreed to pay $20 million for the 50-acre spread, in which Mottola lived when he was married to pop beauty Mariah Carey, and had a lawyer drawing up a contract.
She said Crump agreed to hand over a $2 million down payment – but it never came.
Siano was still waiting for the money when she was contacted by a Post reporter who told her Crump was under investigation.
“I’m very surprised. He seemed sincere,” Siano said. “He agreed to buy the place. He said he loved the house.”
Crump has not been charged with any crime in connection with the real-estate dealings.
The Manhattan district attorney is investigating.
Crump has a New York record dating to 1993 for grand larceny, forgery, credit-card fraud and criminal impersonation, police said. California authorities issued a warrant for his arrest for a parole violation on a grand-theft conviction.