James Patten sentenced to 21 months in New Jersey deli stock manipulation case

According to CNBC, James Patten was sentenced Tuesday to 21 months in prison for his role in a stock manipulation scheme that lifted the market capitalization of a publicly traded company tied to a small New Jersey deli to $100 million. Patten, 67, previously pleaded guilty to securities fraud in U.S. District Court in Camden, New Jersey, in the case involving Hometown International and E-Waste. Prosecutors said Patten and co-conspirators Peter Coker Sr. and Peter Coker Jr. plotted to drive up the share prices of Hometown International, which owned Your Hometown Deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey, and the shell company E-Waste through manipulated trading. They said the prices were artificially inflated by 939% and 19,900%, respectively, with the aim of making the companies more attractive for reverse mergers. Patten had asked for no prison time, while the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey sought a sentence of 12 to 18 months.