New Jersey deli fraudster James Patten sentenced to 21 months in prison

22 July 2026 · Source balance: Centre

James Patten, a 67-year-old former stockbroker from North Carolina, was sentenced to 21 months in prison on Tuesday for his role in a $100 million stock manipulation scheme. Patten and two co-conspirators, Peter Coker Sr. and Peter Coker Jr., artificially inflated the share prices of two companies, including Hometown International, which owned a single unprofitable deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey. By manipulating stock trades, they boosted Hometown's value to over $100 million and another shell company called E-Waste to even higher valuations. The goal was to make these companies attractive vehicles for reverse mergers with private firms seeking to go public. Federal prosecutors sought a sentence between 12 and 18 months, well below the 70 to 87 months suggested by sentencing guidelines. Judge Christine O'Hearn cited Patten's prior 2010 mail fraud conviction and the fact that he returned to fraud just two years after his release from that sentence. The scheme resulted in approximately $5.5 million in investor losses, including losses to Vanderbilt and Duke universities. Patten's two co-conspirators have already served their sentences of six months and 40 months respectively.