The disgraced former co-editor and co-publisher of LevittownNow.com was taken out of county court in Doylestown Monday morning in handcuffs.
Jeffrey Bohen, 46, of Bristol, who separated from the media organization on December 22 of last year, pleaded guilty in court to five felony charges related to theft. The charges were related to unauthorized charges to State Rep. Frank Farry’s campaign account and a Middletown Township hair salon.
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Bohen plead guilty to charges of forgery, unauthorized access to a device, theft by deception, criminal attempt and receiving stolen property.
According to court documents related to the charges in Middletown Township, Bohen made nine attempted transactions and 19 completed transactions from Farry’s account, unlawfully taking $2,450. Bohen, who first began using Farry’s account on November 12, was arrested on February 24 after internal controls within Farry’s campaign noted the unauthorized access.
As noted by police, Bohen also admitted to two additional unauthorized transactions, this time from Virtuous Hair Studio’s accounts, once on December 23 and once more on Christmas Day. Each $100 transaction, was made after Bohen’s separation from LevittownNow.com.
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Bohen, who openly admitted to suffering from bipolar disorder, claimed to Judge Raymond McHugh that his actions were a result of being in a “manic state,” and that a confusion between his pharmacy and his insurance company didn’t allow him to have access to his medication. “If I was taking my medication and taking care of myself, this would have never happened,” Bohen stated for the record.
Bohen’s public defender stated the 46-year-old, who had previously been addicted to cocaine, had discovered his mental health condition through drug treatment in the early 1990s. The public defender stated Bohen has since “turned his life around”.
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McHugh remarked Bohen’s actions to use his status with a media organization to steal money from advertisers was “unacceptable”.
Bohen was ordered to pay $500 in restitution back to the Farry campaign account and an additional $200 in restitution back to LevittownNow.com. Tom Sofield, owner of LevittownNow.com, said he initially refunded Virtuous Hair Studio after the incident, believing they had been victim to a billing error.
Farry, who said his Santander bank accounts reimbursed him for most of the money lost, said the balance not covered by the bank remains at $500, which is the reason for the low restitution. Farry told LevittownNow.com Monday evening that if he does not receive the restitution owed to him by Bohen by the next election, he will be filing a complaint with the courts.
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Bohen, who is ordered to have no contact with the victims in this case, will also be required to undergo a mental health evaluation. His sentence carries a weight of no less than 3 and no more than twenty three months in the Bucks County Correctional Facility. Bohen could have faced up to seven years in prison and a fine of $15,000.
Bohen will however receive credit towards time spent in jail during his initial charge and time spent in the Horsham Clinic. The incidents combined will take approximately 19 days off his sentencing.
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The former editor ended his sentencing with an apology not only to the advertisers who fell victim to his crimes, but to his colleagues at LevittownNow.com.
“I am pleased to see that justice was served today. While I appreciate Mr. Bohen’s apology before a judge in court, his criminal actions were malicious, selfish and deserving of the sentence handed down by Judge McHugh,” said Sofield. “I am happy LevittownNow.com is able to successfully continue to provide a platform for local news and a hub for local businesses. I would like to offer my most sincere thanks to the Bristol Borough Police Department, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and the Middletown Township Police Department.”
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“I should be made whole by every nickle and dime he stole,” Farry said. “It wasn’t my money, it was money raised by supporters of my campaign, and with Mr. Bohen covering my campaign in the past, he obviously knew where he was stealing the money from.”
Regarding Bohen, Farry said he should have sought help from him or his colleagues before the situation escalated. “We would have tried to help him with social services, just like we would for a resident,” he said. “I recognize that when people spend time in jail that’s on the taxpayers, but hopefully he gets the help he needs so he doesn’t victimize someone else. Hopefully it sends a message. He will forever be a felon.”
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