Former Mass. congressional candidate sentenced to 21 months in prison for campaign law violations

Abhijit “Beej” Das was convicted last year of violating the Federal Election Campaign Act and making false statements.

A former Massachusetts congressional candidate will serve prison time for violating campaign finance laws and other charges, prosecutors announced.

Abhijit “Beej” Das was sentenced last week to 21 months in prison for violating the Federal Election Campaign Act and making false statements, according to the office of Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy.

Das, who finished seventh in the Democratic primary won by Rep. Lori Trahan in the 2017-2018 election, was convicted last year of one count of accepting excessive campaign contributions, one count of conduit contributions, one count of conversion of campaign funds, and two counts of making a false statement.

During the campaign, Das created a scheme to inflate his fundraising numbers by soliciting personal loans from friends and close associates above the amount allowed by law, prosecutors said. He was also accused of using his campaign account to pay outstanding debts for his hotel business and covering up the withdrawals with falsified campaign finance reports.

“The FBI is determined to protect the integrity of our electoral system and will not let corruption like this go unchecked,” Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Boston Division, said in a statement.

Das has been ordered to serve one year of supervised release following his prison sentence and to pay a fine of $25,000.

Das has also been indicted separately on 10 counts of wire fraud in a case where authorities allege he diverted more than $5 million in escrow funds from his client’s accounts for personal expenses, according to Levy’s office. He has pleaded not guilty in that case and has been out on release pending the trial.