A Connecticut neighborhood was shocked when a million-dollar house popped up on land that sat empty for decades. But the bigger surprise was for the man who owns that land — because he had no idea a house was even being built.
It's a tale of two property owners: A developer who paid $350,000 for the land in Oct. 2022 and was building a four-bedroom home, which was set to sell for just under $1.5 million. And then there's the man who says he’s owned the property on Sky Top Terrace in Fairfield for decades, and never sold it to a developer or anyone at all.
In a lawsuit filed in July, Daniel Kenigsberg — who lives on Long Island — says he owns the property and claims a fraudulent deed was given to a lawyer who had power of attorney for a Daniel Kenigsberg of South Africa. The lawsuit states that the true owner has never lived in South Africa.
The property in Fairfield was undeveloped for years.
"Kids used to love to walk by and hang out. For them it was a little forest," said neighbor Bob Bove. "You hear these things happen, but not next to you."
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The Fairfield Police Department told NBC New York that their detective bureau is actively investigating how the mix-up may have happened. Construction has since been halted, while the building site draws curious onlookers.
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"People just keep driving by. They wanna see what’s going on. Take a look at the house. And it just causes traffic," said Adriana Bove.
"I just hope everyone involved gets what they need because it seems there are two victims in this case," said neighbor Chris Beaver.
The defendants in the case, including the developer and the attorney, had no comment.
Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of the story incorrectly stated that the developer purchased the property in Oct. 2023. The land was purchased in Oct. 2022.
