Feds: Mark Hotton, guilty of 'Rebecca' fraud, violates bail

A West Islip man who pleaded guilty in July to two frauds -- one involving the supposed financing of a Broadway production of a musical version of "Rebecca" -- was in federal custody Thursday after violating the terms of his bail, federal officials said.

Mark Hotton, 47, "will remain in custody until sentencing" on Feb. 14 due to "multiple violations of the terms and conditions of his bail," Robert Nardoza, spokesman for the Eastern District of the U.S. attorney's office, said in a statement.

Hotton had put up properties in Alaska and New Jersey worth $1 million to secure a total of $3 million in bail, according to officials.

In addition to the bail, U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert in Central Islip ordered Hotton to wear an electronic monitor and to steer clear of sales or finance jobs.

Seybert also forbade Hotton from opening any new bank accounts or starting any new companies, officials said.

The judge said Hotton could not leave his home unless he was going to work, a medical appointment or a religious service.

Seybert ordered Hotton remanded Thursday after prosecutors called for his bail to be revoked, saying "none of these conditions have been honored."

Hotton lied about "the terms of and conditions of his employment," prosecutors said in a letter to Seybert.

"Hotton falsely claimed to be working in a training program in order to leave his home, including on Labor Day, where he was observed by neighbors on the ferry to Fire Island."

He also "provided forged and fraudulent documentation concerning his employment duties and hid . . . the fact that he was fired" from his job, the letter stated. The nature of that job was not disclosed.

Hotton pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan in July to two counts of fraud involving a Connecticut real estate company and the would-be Broadway production of "Rebecca." He faces up to 41 months in prison.

That same week, in federal court in Central Islip, he pleaded guilty to money laundering for running various unrelated frauds since 1995. In that case, he faces up to 121 months in prison.