Florida Man, 66, Pleads Guilty to Luxury Homebuilding Fraud Scheme

BOSTON – A former luxury homebuilder from Florida has pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States and creating false documents to help one of his clients obtain a mortgage.

Kent Pecoy, 66, of San Marco, Florida, previously of Wilbraham, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of making a false statement to a federally insured financial institution. U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni scheduled sentencing for Aug. 20, 2024.

Pecoy was previously indicted in December 2019 along with his son, Jason Pecoy, and Kevin M. Kennedy, the former owner of a golf management company, for allegedly conspiring to defraud the United States by concealing cash payments for the construction of Kennedy’s two homes in East Longmeadow and West Dennis. The defendants were later charged in a superseding indictment in January 2020.

As part of the scheme, Pecoy received $1,116,900 in cash payments from Kennedy for the purchase and construction of custom-built homes in East Longmeadow and on Cape Cod. Pecoy failed to deposit most of the cash into business bank accounts, instead distributing it directly to vendors and subcontractors.

Pecoy also created and maintained separate ledgers documenting Kennedy’s cash payments, created and maintained false contracts and cover sheets, and created false entries in his company’s accounting system to conceal the cash payments. In January 2010, Pecoy and Kennedy made false statements to Charles Schwab Bank on a loan to Kennedy and his wife for the construction of a residence in East Longmeadow.

The charge of making a false statement to a federally insured financial institution provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine of $1 million. Sentences are imposed based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The conspiracy charges provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Harry Chavis, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven H. Breslow and Neil L. Desroches of the Springfield Branch Office are prosecuting the case along with Trial Attorney Eric B. Powers of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.