Three former stars of New York's luxury real estate scene are now convicted sex traffickers quietly looking toward President Trump for a possible lifeline. The New York Times reports that Tal Alexander, 39, and his twin brothers Oren and Alon, 38, have been exploring how to seek presidential pardons, reaching out to a lobbyist and an influential Jewish nonprofit with a track record on clemency, according to people familiar with the discussions. So far, there's no indication that the White House has been approached formally or is considering their case.
The Alexanders, who face up to life in prison at their August sentencing, have denied the charges and plan to appeal; their lawyer says he knows nothing about any pardon push. The Tzedek Association, which helped secure clemency for other Trump-era cases, declined to get involved, with one person citing the nature of the allegations. Yehuda Kaploun, a State Department special envoy tasked with fighting antisemitism, acknowledged intervening only to raise safety and possible antisemitism concerns while the brothers were jailed pretrial, but he didn't rule out reviewing a clemency bid.
Even allies say a pardon is unlikely, as experts note Trump has avoided granting clemency in sex-crime cases and remains politically shadowed by questions around Jeffrey Epstein. Meanwhile, a media rep for the brothers recently spoke with Us Weekly to insist the verdict against them was a "surprising" and unfair one. The AP has more on their crimes.