Fyre Festival fraudster gets 6 years in prison

A New York man whose business ventures targeted wealthy, status-seeking millennials was sentenced to six years in prison for defrauding investors of $27.4 million in the disastrous 2017 Fyre Festival and then, while out on bail, running a separate concert-ticket scam.

Billy McFarland, 27, appeared with family members in a Manhattan courtroom on Thursday as U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald delivered the sentence. He pleaded guilty in March and July to the separate scams, which the government said were orchestrated to help pay for an extravagant lifestyle.

“I can’t believe how wrong I was,” McFarland, wearing eyeglasses and a tan prison jumpsuit, told the judge before the sentence was handed down. “I can’t believe how stupid I was. I betrayed the trust of my investors, customers, family and the court. My mistakes were severe and they hurt a lot of people.”

McFarland, who read from a prepared statement, said the “extremely bitter reality” is that he’d squandered his privileged upbringing. He went on to describe the violence and intimidation he’s dealt with in jail awaiting sentencing, saying incarceration had given him a new perspective on life. Those remarks brought his family members to tears.

Randall Jackson, McFarland’s lawyer, largely blamed his client’s conduct on manic behavior stemming from an undiagnosed mental disorder and possible delusions of grandeur. His remarks were based on the findings of two paid professionals who examined the defendant and filed reports with the court.

But Buchwald slapped down those explanations, saying mental health issues aren’t an excuse for criminal conduct.

She mocked the defense’s portrayal of McFarland as a “well-intentioned, enthusiastic young man who got in over his head,” citing the expensive upgrades he made to his apartment while the fraud was underway.