Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025
In the District of Utah, 443 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, or embezzlement in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 287 (65%) received a prison term, with a median of 24 months (2 years), and 140 (32%) received probation only. Restitution was ordered for 339 (77%).
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 › Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement: District of Utah
In brief: In the District of Utah, 443 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, or embezzlement in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of them, 287 (65%) received a prison term, with a median of 24 months (2 years), and 140 (32%) received probation only. Restitution was ordered for 339 (77%).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 443 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Restitution Is Common in These Cases
Restitution was ordered for 339 of the 443 people (77%). A fine was ordered for 18 (4%).
Restitution is money ordered to be paid back to victims. It is far more common here than in the district's drug and firearms offense types.
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 277 people (63%), with a median term of 36 months.
Prison, Probation, and Median Terms
Of the 443 people, 287 (65%) were sent to prison and 140 (32%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. In all 94 districts, 73% were sent to prison.
The median prison term was 24 months. A quarter of those sent to prison received 36 months or more, and a quarter received 11.4 months or less. The all-district median was 20 months, which is lower than the district's median.
For all offenses in the district, the median prison term was 30 months. The terms are those imposed, not time served.
Guilty Pleas and Trials
Of the 443 people, 430 (97%) pleaded guilty, and 13 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, guilty pleas were 96%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 24 months. After a trial it was 47.5 months, based on 10 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Almost every guilty plea (more than 99%) had a written plea agreement.
Guidelines and Mandatory Minimums
This offense type is the Commission's category. In the district, §2B1.1 (Larceny, Embezzlement, and Other Forms of Theft) was the primary guideline for 358 people.
A total of 3 people were sentenced under §2X1.1 (Attempt, Solicitation, or Conspiracy (Not Covered by a Specific Offense Guideline)). A total of 2 were sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact).
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 73 of the 436 people with that information recorded (17%).
Position Against the Guideline Range
Sentences below the range at the government's request were given to 47% of the people (198). Within-range sentences were 37% (157), below-range sentences without a request were 15% (63), and above-range sentences were 1% (5).
In all districts, 45% of fraud, theft, and embezzlement sentences were within the range. For all offenses in the district, the share was 24%.
Yearly Counts Fell and Then Rose
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 have 233 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 have 210 people. The count was 61 in each of fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018, and 24 in fiscal year 2021.
The yearly median prison term ranged from 12 months in fiscal year 2022 to 27 months in fiscal year 2024. These are the median terms among those sent to prison in each year. Fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 61 | 24 months | 97% |
| 2017 | 61 | 18 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 61 | 24 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 50 | 24 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 36 | 24 months | 97% |
| 2021 | 24 | 26 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 32 | 12 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 32 | 18 months | 91% |
| 2024 | 40 | 27 months | 90% |
| 2025 | 46 | 22 months | 96% |
Criminal History, Size of the Group, and Limits
In criminal history, 57% were in the lowest category (Category I) and 14% were in the highest (Category VI).
These cases were 6% of the 7,061 people sentenced in the district. Hill AFB, Utah, is in the district, but courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court.
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, and the records give no details of any scheme.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Utah (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Utah") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement" (443). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.
Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.
Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the District of Utah, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.