The former Plymouth Schools food service director caught in a decade-long scheme to steal equipment and food from the students’ lunch program was sentenced Wednesday to six months in prison by a federal judge in Boston.
Patrick Van Cott, 64, appeared in a dark gray suit and stood to address the court before he was sentenced, acknowledging the presence of school officials in the audience.
“I’m deeply sorry from the bottom of my heart,” Van Cott said. “I apologize for the hurt I caused to them and the community and the hurt I caused my family.”
U.S. District Judge Julia E. Kobick listened, then calmly rendered her sentence, rejecting pleas for leniency from Van Cott’s attorney based on his client’s “life of extraordinarily good works.”
“I can sense the remorse in your voice,” Kobick told Van Cott, but “it matters that it was not a lapse in judgment – it took planning.”
“Your crime here was a serious one,” she said. “Your job was to look out for public school students. You did that, but you also looked out for yourself.”
Kobick said Van Cott’s “abuse of public trust over a long period of time” meant a lenient sentence of probation would “not reflect the seriousness of the crimes” and would not send the appropriate message to others in positions of power.
The 2:30 p.m. sentencing at the John Joseph Moakley U.S. Courthouse likely marks the end of a saga that has captured the attention of Plymouth residents, many of whom have questioned how such a brazen scheme could have gone undetected for so long.
Van Cott walked out of the courthouse with orders to report in 10 weeks to begin serving his sentence. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Kobick could have imposed a sentence of up to 10 months in federal prison.
“He stole thousands of times over 11 years,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristina Barclay told the judge, asking for the harsher sentence. “He was caught. It’s not as if he turned himself in … He completely outfitted his side business on the backs of Plymouth schoolkids.”
In his plea for a more lenient sentence of two years’ probation – in addition to the 111 days he has served in home confinement while out on bail – his attorney said Van Cott was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2023 and suffered acute depression while confined to his home awaiting his sentencing.
“It is befuddling why this man did what he did,” said defense attorney Nathaniel Amendola, adding that neither he nor Van Cott wanted to minimize the charges.
But, Amendola said, “What was the ultimate harm to the children here? There is no evidence that a child has missed a school lunch.”
In an earlier memorandum to the judge, Amendola argued Van Cott’s crimes are “in stark contrast to the other side of him: the side that he is known and loved for.”
“Patrick is a father, husband, volunteer, friend, and cancer survivor,” the attorney wrote. “As the attached letters of support indicate, Patrick is beloved by his community. His friends and family write about his selflessness and his abiding desire to help other people. Except for this criminality, he created a life of extraordinarily good works.”
Twelve friends and family members filed letters of support for Van Cott with the court, describing him as a family man who coached his kids’ sports teams, organized food drives, and left a positive impact on his friends.
“What stands out most about Patrick is that his actions have always matched his words. His integrity, strong work ethic, and commitment to helping others have remained constant throughout the decades I have known him,” his mother-in-law wrote.
The judge on Wednesday said it was “difficult to reconcile” Van Cott’s crimes with his family’s many statements about his character.
“Everything about your life would not have predicted that you would walk down this path,” Kobick said.
After handing down the sentence, she said Van Cott was “fortunate to have a loving family and community support” and wished him luck. She said she will decide the matter of Van Cott’s restitution to the school district at a later date.
Van Cott, who worked for Plymouth Public Schools for 22 years, was arrested in June 2025 after an anonymous tip to school officials triggered a police investigation.
He agreed to plead guilty to one count of federal program theft and two counts of wire fraud in April, admitting to billing the school for equipment and food he then used for his private business, the Snack Shack, on a beach in Barnstable.
Since starting the Snack Shack in 2014, Van Cott stole everything from paper goods to condiments and premium burgers, prosecutors said. He frequently ordered school cafeteria employees to slice deli meat he later sold at his business. In security camera footage from April 2025, Van Cott is seen loading a $2,268.99 refrigerator onto the back of his pickup truck.
An internal audit of the district’s food services operations conducted after Van Cott’s arrest found the department essentially operated as a “silo,” with little, if any, oversight. Van Cott oversaw payroll processing, approved expenditures, and controlled assets, according to the audit.
Police estimated Van Cott stole $30,014.64 in equipment and food from the district between November 2023 and May 2025, according to court documents, though the estimate is based only on what police could document.
The “actual cost to the District is far greater and less tangible,” Superintendent Christopher Campbell wrote in a victim impact statement filed with the court. He said the district’s reputation was harmed and his administration has faced increased scrutiny after Van Cott’s arrest.
“The public has, understandably, asked repeatedly how Mr. Van Cott got away with his actions for so long, without the administration knowing about it,” Campbell wrote. “We have asked ourselves the same questions and taken measures to prevent similar situations in the future.”
The district has taken steps to freeze Van Cott’s retirement benefits and researched whether his house can be used to help pay restitution, Campbell wrote, estimating the district’s losses at nearly $90,000, including the $68,300 internal audit, legal fees and stolen inventory.
In seeking prison time, prosecutors also detailed how Van Cott tried to conceal his scheme. In May 2024, he ordered three pieces of equipment not typically used in the school cafeteria, telling the vendor it would be used by students for a “‘Top Chef’ type of cooking program.”
Van Cott later asked the vendor to do him a “favor” and send a false invoice listing items typically ordered for the schools. He then submitted that $3,350 invoice to the district and took the equipment – which included a chargrill, fryolator, and griddle – to use at the Snack Shack, prosecutors said.
“He bought equipment for his business instead of the schools’ cafeterias, he bought high-end food products that he sold for 100% profit, and he used the schools’ Food Services employees to slice deli meat for him every week of the summer so that he could sell sandwiches by the seashore and save on labor costs,” Barclay, the assistant U.S. attorney, wrote.
Prosecutors also said Van Cott earned more than $100,000 annually in his role with the district and owned two houses – one in Sandwich and one in Hyannis – which they said indicate his crimes were driven by “greed, not need.”
“He stole food and equipment from the schools not because he needed to put food on the table, he did it to make extra money during the summer when he was supposed to be providing meals to kids in summer camps and getting ready for the next school year,” Barclay wrote.
In a character reference filed with the court, Van Cott’s wife, Lisa Van Cott, wrote that he “worked tirelessly” to improve the Plymouth schools’ food service program, including working overtime and taking on others’ responsibilities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he helped establish a food bank in one of the schools, she wrote.
“Throughout his career with Plymouth Public Schools,” she continued, “he consistently put the needs of students, families, and coworkers before himself.”
Emily Spatz can be reached at emily@plymouthindependent.org.