Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A Massachusetts man who managed several sober homes has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for his role in multiple fraud schemes. Nicholas Espinosa, 39, formerly of Randolph, received the sentence from U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young in Boston federal court. He will also serve three years of supervised release.
Espinosa pleaded guilty in October 2024 to charges including two counts of wire fraud conspiracy, one count of conspiracy to make false statements to a mortgage lending business, 15 counts of wire fraud, six counts of unlawful monetary transactions (money laundering), and one count of making false statements to a mortgage lender. His arrest came in March 2023 alongside co-conspirator Daniel Cleggett.
Cleggett founded A Vision From God LLC (AVFG) in November 2016. The company operated sober homes under names such as Brady’s Place, Lakeshore Retreat, and Lambert House in Boston, Wakefield, Quincy, and Weymouth. Espinosa was responsible for managing the daily operations at these facilities.
According to authorities, Cleggett, Espinosa, and a client conspired to defraud a New York-based family trust that was paying for the client's stay at Brady’s Place in Quincy. "Cleggett and Espinosa overcharged the family trust for room and board by up to $12,500 per month by submitting false and fraudulent invoices to the family trust," prosecutors said. They would then issue “refund” checks to the client as part of the scheme.
Between October 2019 and December 2021, Cleggett used straw purchasers—including Espinosa—to buy three residential properties in Weymouth and Boston intended for use as sober homes. Prosecutors stated that "Cleggett, Espinosa and others submitted false information and fraudulent documentation including falsely representing that the three properties were intended to be purchased as primary residences when, in reality, each was intended to be a sober home."
The case was announced by United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Demeo of IRS Criminal Investigation; Ted E. Docks of the FBI's Boston Division; with assistance from police departments in Kingston, Randolph, and Quincy. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Mulcahy and Dustin Chao are prosecuting.
