Fraud case tied to $100 million NJ deli ends in guilty pleas

This illustration photo taken on September 26, 2022 in Los Angeles, shows a person checking information online for the now permanently closed Paulsboro, New Jersey’s Hometown Deli in front of a screen displaying the facade of the restaurant. – US officials announced fraud charges September 26 against three men who orchestrated a $100 million scheme to inflate the market value of a company whose only revenue source was a small-town New Jersey delicatessen. It is the latest twist in the odd saga of a Paulsboro, New Jersey deli owned by Hometown International, which saw its stock valuation soar in 2021 despite annual deli revenues of less than $40,000.

Photo by CHRIS DELMAS/AFP via Getty Images