James Joseph Cohen, Bank Fraud, Massachusetts 2023

BOSTON – A Wenham man is accused of running a scheme to obtain over $1.2 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds made available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. James Joseph Cohen, 58, was arrested and charged with one count of bank fraud.

According to the charging documents, between April 2020 and September 2021, Cohen submitted six false applications to financial institutions and to the Small Business Administration to obtain pandemic-related relief funds on behalf of companies that he controlled. In these applications, Cohen allegedly misstated the revenues of the companies, the persons employed, or amounts paid to those employees in the 12-month period preceding the application.

The charge of bank fraud carries a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $1 million or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Cohen was released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Miron Bloom of Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell’s Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit.

Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell, FBI Boston Division Special Agent in Charge Joseph R. Bonavolonta, and IRS Criminal Investigations Boston Special Agent in Charge Joleen D. Simpson made the announcement today.

The COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force was established by the Attorney General to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud.

If you have information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19, you can report it by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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

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