An Easton man was sentenced to jailtime for stealing $112,000 from customers in a bogus "rent-to-own" scheme, Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office said yesterday.
Joshua Leventhal, 44, was also ordered to make full restitution to his victims after pleading guilty Tuesday in Bristol Superior Court. He was charged with four counts of larceny over $250 and one count of larceny by a single scheme.
"This defendant tricked consumers into believing his program would result in easy homeownership, when in fact, not one of his nearly 100 customers was ever able to purchase a home through that program," Coakley said in a statement. "He will now serve time in jail for his crimes and will be required to pay full restitution to the victims."
Superior Court Judge Robert J. Kane sentenced Leventhal to two years in prison, with 10 months to serve and the balance suspended for 10 years of probation. He will begin his sentence on Feb. 17, 2015.
According to a statement from Coakley’s office, Leventhal operated a "Rent to Own" scheme out of his home in Easton, describing the program as a way for first-time home buyers or people with poor credit to rent a property through a complicated arrangement, which would allow the buyer to later purchase the property for a set price and set aside a portion of each monthly rent check as a deposit on that purchase.
Leventhal targeted first-time homebuyers and consumers with poor credit through online advertisements, Coakley’s office said, posting thousands of online advertisements with deceptive claims, like: "Our rent2own program WILL turn you into a homeowner ASAP," and "Rent 2 Own WILL Turn You Into A Homeowner Even If You Have Bad Credit and/or No Down Payment." He also fabricated customer testimonials on his now-defunct website.
In reality, investigators learned that out of Leventhal’s nearly 100 customers, only three customers ended up occupying a property through his program, and not one of his customers ever purchased a property through his program.
According to investigators, after he convinced potential customers that his program was a functional and successful path to homeownership, Leventhal charged them an enrollment fee, typically ranging from $150 to $2,000.
In some cases, he also received additional deposit money from his customers, ranging from $4,350 to $7,000. However, Leventhal did not use these funds to pursue homeownership for his customers, but rather kept the money for his own personal use.
A Statewide Grand Jury returned indictments against Leventhal in August of 2013 and he was later arraigned in Bristol Superior Court.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Andrew Doherty of AG Coakley’s Fraud and Financial Crimes Division, with assistance from Investigator Marco DePalma, Victim Advocate Megan Murphy, and Sergeant Jack Lynn of the Easton Police Department.
