In journalism, connecting the dots is fundamental. When a name surfaces in a major story, reporters typically cross-reference their own archives, check past coverage, and investigate whether there’s more to the story. It’s basic practice. Yet in The Real Deal’s extensive coverage of the Alexander brothers’ sex trafficking trial, a peculiar pattern has emerged that raises questions about whether these basic journalistic standards are being applied.
The Real Deal has not shied away from the salacious details of the case. In a February 6th article, the publication mentioned Erik Yehezkel by name, quoting his inflammatory text messages to Alon Alexander: “Yeah, let’s get these girls real wasted, maybe we’ll be able to bang them easier.” The article also referenced their discussion of using “tequila and Xanax” and Yehezkel’s role in creating a group chat for a trip to Tulum where he wrote, “I just need to handle drugs.” To the casual reader, Yehezkel appears as a peripheral figure, a “friend” of the brothers caught up in their sordid world. Notably absent from this coverage: any mention of Yehezkel’s real estate connections.
This is particularly striking given that The Real Deal is, by its own description, a real estate publication.
Here’s where things get strange. When The Real Deal mentioned Yehezkel in their trial reporting, there was no reference to the fact that this same Erik Yehezkel had been interviewed and quoted by their publication just a year earlier, in January 2024, as a prominent real estate professional. No connection was drawn. No follow-up questions were raised. No mention was made of his real estate background. For a publication that claims to focus specifically on the real estate industry, this is a glaring omission. The entire premise of their Alexander brothers coverage is the intersection of real estate and crime. Yet when mentioning Erik Yehezkel, they somehow failed to note his real estate connections, despite having covered those very connections extensively in their own pages. Wouldn’t it be natural for a real estate publication to investigate whether the “Erik Yehezkel” mentioned in text messages is the same “Erik Yehezkel” they had previously covered as co-owner of a major Miami Beach real estate firm?