The Pakistani government is screwing New York City taxpayers – again.
After pocketing $146.6 million to run the Roosevelt Hotel as a migrant shelter for two years, Pakistan’s state-owned property is now stiffing the city for $13.6 million in overdue property taxes and nearly $1 million in unpaid water bills, The Post has learned.
Even worse: A sweetheart deal with the feds to redevelop the Midtown landmark into a supertall skyscraper could let Pakistan dodge all future taxes — potentially costing the city tens of millions per year.
The Pakistani-owned hotel at 45 East 45th St. signed a payment agreement with the city’s Department of Finance in September 2023, when it already owed $11.6 million.
But despite getting paid millions by taxpayers to house migrants, Pakistan blew off a $573,361 payment due Jan. 2 and skipped a $3.9 million half-year payment.
“This property is currently in default on its payment plan,” a DOF spokesman confirmed.
The hotel’s annual property tax bill hits $7.7 million this July.
A joint venture between Pakistan and the US government to demolish the Roosevelt and build an office tower could trigger a federal tax exemption, since the State Department typically asks the DOF to grant one when a foreign government buys US property.
“We have not received a letter in this case,” the DOF spokesman said. “However, any charges that accrued prior to government ownership must still be paid.”
The Roosevelt served as the primary intake center for migrants flooding the city starting in 2022, processing more than 173,000 of the 232,000 asylum seekers. The hotel often housed 2,600 migrants a night from May 2023 through June 2025, under a $220 million contract that paid about $202 per night per room.
What was supposed to be a safe refuge for asylum seekers became a hellhole. Migrants slept in retail spaces and on sidewalks as the hotel became overwhelmed.
The Roosevelt became a hub for the Venezuelan street gang Tren de Aragua, which organized moped robbery crews out of the hotel, according to Homeland Security officials.
Another Venezuelan illegal housed at the Roosevelt, Jose Ibarra, departed the hotel in September 2023 and less than six months later, murdered University of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. Ibarra is serving a life sentence without parole.
The city is still battling the Trump administration over $80.5 million in FEMA reimbursements clawed back on Feb. 11, 2025.
Meanwhile, Pakistan has been scrambling to unload the Roosevelt, which has been owned by state-run Pakistan International Airlines since 1999. It hired real estate giant JLL in late 2023 to solicit bids expected to top $1 billion. But JLL withdrew over conflicts of interest.
The potential joint venture with the US government is still in early stages, with only a Memorandum of Understanding signed.
The Pakistani Embassy, the GSA, the city Department of Environmental Protection, and the Mayor’s office did not respond to requests for comment.