Developer whose payments to Miami Mayor Suarez are caught up in FBI probe has stepped down

Embattled real estate CEO Rishi Kapoor has agreed to step down as manager of Location Ventures, the firm at the center of multiple federal investigations, including an FBI inquiry into Kapoor’s $10,000-a-month consulting agreement with Miami Mayor Francis Suarez when Kapoor was seeking zoning approvals from the city.

A spokesperson for the development company confirmed that Kapoor had bowed out as manager, but said the decision was amicable.

The spokesperson also said Location Ventures has appointed former Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Alan Fine to oversee liquidation of company assets.

It has been a spectacular fall for a rising real estate star who befriended South Florida politicians and captured headlines for his planned luxury condos in Coral Gables and Fort Lauderdale, and projects in Miami and Miami Beach that offered “co-living,” which is similar to dorm-style housing.

The spokesperson forecast a company restructuring, but did not provide further details or respond to questions from the Herald about whether the board voted Kapoor out or if he is still the company’s CEO.

A source familiar with the matter said the goal of liquidation is to repay creditors and return as much money to investors as possible.

Neither Kapoor nor his attorneys responded to the Herald’s requests for comment.

The change in leadership comes amid a swirl of controversy and increased public scrutiny of the company, spurred by the revelation in a lawsuit from former CFO Greg Brooks that Kapoor entered into a lucrative consulting agreement with Suarez. Just this month, two major investors sued Kapoor claiming he owes them $25 million under a contract agreement signed last year to buy out their interests.

READ MORE: Mayor for Hire: Francis Suarez’s wealth boomed while he promoted Miami as tech capital

In addition to the FBI, the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office and county ethics investigators, have launched inquiries into Kapoor, his business and his consulting arrangement with Suarez, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination.

Public records and internal meeting notes from Location Ventures indicate a close relationship between Kapoor and Suarez in recent years. In 2020, the mayor helped Kapoor draft a change to Miami’s zoning code that would have benefited a project in Coconut Grove, according to city emails. Calendar invites obtained by the Herald through public records requests indicate the mayor and Kapoor met at least half a dozen times between January 2020 and August 2021.

As early as September 2021, Suarez was paid as a consultant under an agreement that has earned the mayor at least $170,000 since 2021, company financial records reviewed by the Herald show. While the mayor was on the payroll, Kapoor asked Suarez’s office for help overcoming a crucial permitting hurdle that threatened the viability of a $70 million redevelopment project in the Grove. The permit was eventually granted after a Suarez aide intervened.

Suarez did not respond Tuesday to the Herald’s requests for comment. In the past, he has denied wrongdoing and said his role was to help recruit investors for Kapoor, adding that he welcomes the scrutiny.

Kapoor’s presence in local halls of power extended into Coral Gables, where last year he began leasing a vacant retail storefront owned by a small group of investors, including Mayor Vince Lago. Lago and his business partners purchased the property in late May of 2022. Within weeks, Kapoor became Lago’s tenant.

Meanwhile, the Coral Gables City Commission was reviewing Kapoor’s luxury condo project at 1505 Ponce de Leon Blvd., located directly across the street from the vacant retail storefront he rented from the mayor. The commission approved the project, with Lago abstaining from a series of votes.

Location Ventures has been dogged by mounting financial and permitting problems that have stalled its projects.

Last month, the city of Miami Beach shut down construction at a Location Ventures project on Washington Avenue, where the development firm had begun work on a co-living space without the required permits.

And contractors for projects in Miami Beach and the Gables have filed a series of liens for nonpayment against Location Ventures in the past three months, according to public records. In June, the architects for the 1505 Ponce project in the Gables filed liens totaling more than $290,000. Since May, subcontractors for the Miami Beach project have filed liens for over $1 million combined.

Miami Herald investigative reporter Sarah Blaskey and staff writer Aaron Leibowitz contributed reporting.