A disbarred attorney from Somerset County, New Jersey, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for defrauding victims in a wire fraud scheme, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Alina Habba.
Lawrence Coven, 61, of Hillsborough, New Jersey, had previously pleaded guilty to a charge of wire fraud before U.S. District Court Judge Robert Kirsch in Trenton federal court, where Judge Kirsch also imposed the sentence.
Court documents and statements reveal that Coven operated Sunrise Enterprises LLC, a company that claimed to offer financial services to investors. Coven misled investors by promising to invest their funds through Sunrise for high returns, ranging from 10 to 15 percent, by offering short-term loans to borrowers who were unable to secure standard loans. He assured investors their investments were risk-free. Contrary to his promises, Coven used the investor funds to cover personal expenses such as utilities, entertainment, real estate, credit card bills, and cash withdrawals. To appease questioning investors, Coven falsely assured them of the safety of their money and used funds from new investors to pay existing ones, resembling a Ponzi scheme.
Besides the prison term, Judge Kirsch ordered Coven to serve three years of supervised release.
Special agents of the FBI, directed by Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G. Reilly in Newark, were credited by U.S. Attorney Habba for their role in the investigation that led to the sentencing.
The government’s case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fatime Meka Cano and Olta Bejleri of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark. Jeffrey Chiesa, Esq. served as the defense counsel for Coven.
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