Wednesday, July 22, 2026

The Fraudster Behind a $100M Deli Inventory Rip-off Is Going to Jail

A convicted fraudster who helped make a New Jersey deli value $100 million on paper is now heading to jail, once more. James Patten was sentenced to 21 months for his position in manipulating shares of Hometown Worldwide, the father or mother firm of Your Hometown Deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey, CNBC reviews. Patten and co-conspirators Peter Coker Sr. and Peter Coker Jr. inflated Hometown’s inventory by 939%.

The rip-off was designed to make the businesses enticing shells for reverse mergers with personal corporations trying to go public. However the plan fell aside after hedge fund supervisor David Einhorn flagged the deli’s weird valuation to shoppers in 2021, joking, “The pastrami should be superb.” A CNBC investigation linked Patten’s historical past of prior fraud convictions to the deli’s possession.

Patten’s co-conspirators already served their sentences, six and 40 months respectively. The deli itself, run by a highschool wrestling coach who had no thought he was a part of the rip-off, stopped promoting pastrami again in 2022.

A convicted fraudster who helped make a New Jersey deli value $100 million on paper is now heading to jail, once more. James Patten was sentenced to 21 months for his position in manipulating shares of Hometown Worldwide, the father or mother firm of Your Hometown Deli in Paulsboro, New Jersey, CNBC reviews. Patten and co-conspirators Peter Coker Sr. and Peter Coker Jr. inflated Hometown’s inventory by 939%.

The rip-off was designed to make the businesses enticing shells for reverse mergers with personal corporations trying to go public. However the plan fell aside after hedge fund supervisor David Einhorn flagged the deli’s weird valuation to shoppers in 2021, joking, “The pastrami should be superb.” A CNBC investigation linked Patten’s historical past of prior fraud convictions to the deli’s possession.

Patten’s co-conspirators already served their sentences, six and 40 months respectively. The deli itself, run by a highschool wrestling coach who had no thought he was a part of the rip-off, stopped promoting pastrami again in 2022.

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