A Brockton man, Samuel N. Montronde, has been found guilty of defrauding Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited of $2.3 million through a fraudulent consulting scheme. Montronde, 39, was convicted on three counts of wire fraud by a federal jury in Boston. He is scheduled for sentencing on March 7, 2025, by U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV.
Montronde was arrested and charged in January 2023 alongside his girlfriend Priya Bhambi, who was a senior employee at Takeda. The couple faced indictment from a federal grand jury that same month.
U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy stated, "Today’s jury verdict makes it crystal clear that greed and deception have serious consequences." He commended Takeda for their swift action in reporting the fraud and emphasized the significant repercussions for those abusing their positions.
The fraudulent activities began in February 2022 when Montronde and Bhambi set up Evoluzione Consulting LLC as a fake consulting firm to submit fabricated invoices to Takeda. The couple's scheme involved submitting five false invoices totaling $2.3 million for services never rendered.
Jodi Cohen from the FBI's Boston Division remarked, "Samuel Montronde would do anything for love," highlighting the extent of Montronde's actions to support Bhambi in the embezzlement scheme.
In June 2024, Bhambi pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and additional charges. She received a sentence of 46 months imprisonment followed by two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution amounting to $2,585,480.
The fraudulent funds were used by the couple for personal luxury purchases including vehicles and real estate which are now subject to forfeiture as part of the court order.
U.S. Attorney Levy and FBI SAC Cohen announced the verdict with acknowledgment of Takeda's cooperation during the investigation led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leslie A. Wright and Mackenzie A. Queenin along with Carol E. Head handling asset recovery matters.