A convicted Ponzi schemer who received clemency from former President Donald Trump in 2021 now faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison for orchestrating a massive new investment fraud that targeted hundreds of victims.
From Presidential Pardon to New Charges
Eliyahu "Eli" Weinstein, 51, is scheduled for sentencing on Friday in federal court in Trenton, New Jersey, where prosecutors are seeking an extraordinary 50-year prison term for defrauding more than 150 investors out of $41 million. The sentencing comes just three years after Trump commuted Weinstein's 24-year prison sentence for previous financial crimes.
Weinstein was convicted on March 31 after a trial where jurors heard how he promised investors opportunities in pandemic-related products and Ukrainian aid. Investors believed their money would fund COVID-19 masks, baby formula, and first-aid kits destined for war-torn Ukraine. Instead, Weinstein diverted the funds to support his gambling habits, real estate ventures, and luxury watch purchases.
The Wizard of Fraud
During the trial, five co-defendants who pleaded guilty testified against Weinstein, describing how he masterminded the scheme and used the alias "Mike Konig" to conceal his criminal history from new victims. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Fayer told jurors that Weinstein was "the wizard of the fraud, the wizard of the lies" who coordinated the entire operation.
In a recording played during the trial, Weinstein admitted his methods, stating: "I finagled, and Ponzied, and lied to people to cover us for our deals." Prosecutors revealed that Weinstein gave millions of dollars to friends for casino gambling and purchased "fancy houses, fancy watches" while hiding assets to avoid paying $228.7 million in restitution he still owed victims from his earlier Ponzi scheme.
Unusual Sentence for White-Collar Crime
The requested 50-year sentence represents an unusually severe punishment for white-collar crime. Weinstein's defense attorney, Ilana Haramati, argued in an email that "fifty-year sentences are usually reserved for the most hardened criminals, like murderers or terrorists" and that her client maintains his innocence.
This case highlights the risks when presidential clemency is granted to convicted offenders who subsequently commit new crimes. Earlier this week, another individual freed by Trump in 2021 received a 27-month sentence for violating his release terms.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt recently addressed the clemency process, stating that the administration takes pardons "with the utmost seriousness" and maintains a "very thorough review process" involving the Department of Justice and White House Counsel's office.
Weinstein's criminal history includes a 2013 guilty plea for a real-estate Ponzi scheme that initially earned him a 22-year sentence, later extended by two years for fraud involving Facebook's IPO, now Meta Platforms Inc.
