Massachusetts and Florida man managing Boston/New York firm accused of defrauding clients of $5+ million

BOSTON – An attorney and former candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives was arrested this week in connection with a scheme to defraud a business-to-business supply company based in India of millions of dollars and using client funds for business and personal expenses, including the purchase of a $2.7 million home in Boca Raton, Fla.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 50-year-old Abhijit Das, a/k/a “Beej,” of North Andover, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston on June 20, 2023 on 10 counts of wire fraud. Das was arrested today in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and appeared in the Southern District of Florida this afternoon. In June 2021, Das was arrested for allegedly violating the Federal Election Campaign Act and false statements.

According to the indictment, Das was an attorney and principal manager of a boutique law and advisory firm called Troca Global Advisors with offices in Boston and New York. Beginning in or about May 2020, Das began providing legal representation and escrow services to two twin brothers and their logistical supply company in India that was coordinating large shipments Personal Protective Equipment during the pandemic.

The indictment alleges that Das diverted more than $5 million in escrow funds from his clients’ accounts to other accounts and used the funds for personal expenses – including expenses for his law firm, a yacht owned by one of his hotels, as well as $2.7 million for his Boca Raton home. Das allegedly induced his clients to transfer funds to accounts he controlled in multi-step, layered transactions under the guise of legal advice about the risk of potential litigation and provided clients with fraudulent and forged account statements to conceal the scheme.

The indictment further alleges that Das committed nine of the 10 counts of wire fraud while on court mandated pre-trial release conditions resulting from his June 2021 indictment. That earlier indictment charged Das with campaign finance violations, embezzlement of campaign funds and making materially false statements to the Federal Election Commission. Das ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Massachusetts’ 3rd Congressional District. He lost in the Democratic primary in 2018.

The charges of wire fraud each provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Christopher DiMenna, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Joleen D. Simpson, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil J. Gallagher Jr. of Levy’s Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting the case.