CAMDEN, N.J. — A father and son admitted on Thursday to orchestrating a complex securities fraud scheme that artificially inflated the stock prices of two publicly traded companies, including one tied to a small New Jersey deli, according to U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.
Peter Coker Sr., 82, of Chapel Hill, N.C., and Peter Coker Jr., 56, formerly of Hong Kong, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Christine P. O’Hearn to charges of securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud. A co-conspirator, James Patten, 65, of Winston-Salem, N.C., had previously entered a guilty plea to the same charges.
The scheme, which spanned from 2014 to 2022, involved manipulating the stock prices of Hometown International Inc.—the parent company of a Paulsboro, N.J., deli—and E-Waste Corp., both traded on the OTC Marketplace. Prosecutors allege the defendants created a false impression of market demand through coordinated trading, inflating stock values by as much as 19,900 percent in one case.
Prosecutors say the group gained control of both companies’ shares and management to position them as vehicles for reverse mergers, allowing the defendants to profit from selling their inflated shares. “Their calculated scheme to enrich themselves came at the expense of market integrity,” Sellinger said in a statement.
The charges carry potential sentences of up to 25 years in prison, along with millions of dollars in fines. Sentencing dates for Coker Jr. and Coker Sr. are set for April 2 and May 13, 2025, respectively.
The Cokers’ admissions mark a major development in a fraud case that centered around a deli with less than $40,000 in annual sales but a market valuation of over $100 million.