Russell Abrams, the New York hedge fund manager accused of sexual harassment by two assistants who said they were subjected to topless pictures of his wife, is being sued again — this time by an angry investor.
Abrams, who runs Titan Capital Group, was smacked with a lawsuit yesterday in State Supreme Court in Manhattan by Tradex Global Advisors, a Greenwich, Conn., hedge fund run by Michael Beattie.
Beattie is accusing Abrams of misleading Tradex about Titan’s investment strategy and risk levels, causing Tradex to lose $2.6 million, or 74 percent, of its $3.5 million investment. Following a nearly 12 percent drop in March, Tradex moved to withdraw its money from Titan but was persuaded to stay after Abrams said the firm had adjusted its trades, the lawsuit said.
Abrams allegedly told Tradex’s chief compliance officer that Titan “had allowed positions to get too big” and had “adjusted the size of the defensive positions.”
Tradex upped its investment by $1 million in June and $250,000 on July 1. Then, in July, the fund fell a whopping 27 percent.
“It was clear that risk was not reduced in the portfolio and may have even been increased,” Tradex said in the suit.
Titan’s attorney, Mark Hyland, said Tradex’s suit represents “the actions of a serial plaintiff who is happy reaping gains but blames others when its performance declines.”
Vivian Drohan, the attorney for Tradex, said the firm has filed a handful of cases over the years but always against “bad actors.” “We don’t sue because we didn’t get our redemption,” she said.
Last year, Abrams and his wife Sandra got mixed up in a battle with two former assistants, Cristina Culicea and Danielle Pecile. Sandra sued the two women, accusing them of blackmailing her over topless photos.
The women claimed the suit was retaliation for their sexual harassment complaint against Abrams and his brother Marcus. The women, who are pursuing their case in court, said they were upset when Abrams made them print out photos of his naked wife.


