Former CEO of non-profit nursing home pleads guilty to misapplication of property

Date: Feb. 27, 2026

Contact: [email protected]

BOSTON - The former CEO of the non-profit Edgar P. Benjamin Health Center ("EPBHC") pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to charges arising from his improper use of EPBHC funds.

Tony Francis of Needham pleaded guilty to two counts of intentional misapplication of money from a program receiving federal funds. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for May 20, 2026.

Francis was Administrator, President, and Chief Executive Officer of EPBHC, a non-profit entity that operated Benjamin Healthcare, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility located in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. In and around 2023 and 2024, EPBHC faced significant financial deficiencies that included a shortage of cash and inability to make payroll. In April 2024 the Massachusetts Superior Court ordered the appointment of a receiver to operate EPBHC.

According to court documents, Francis abused his position of trust with EPBHC by intentionally misapplying funds belonging to EPBHC. Specifically, in 2020, Francis used close to $160,000 in Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds, that had been provided to EPBHC by the U.S. Small Business Administration, as a deposit for a personal real estate investment. In addition, in 2023 and 2024, Francis arranged for EPBHC to make payments of principal, interest and late fees on a $100,000 personal loan without having approval of the EPBHC Board of Directors to do so. Finally, at various times between 2022 and 2024, Francis drew on an EPBHC line of credit to transfer funds to his own personal checking account so that he would have sufficient funds account to pay his mortgage and personal credit card bills. In total, Francis misappropriated more than $190,000 from EPBHC, although Francis later returned most of these funds.

The charge of intentional misapplication of money from a program receiving federal funds provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the amount involved. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Abely, Chief of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case along with Massachusetts Assistant Attorney General Kevin Lownds, who was sworn in as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.