Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025
2,530 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, and embezzlement offenses in the Southern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 87% received a prison term, with a median of 15 months, compared with 73% sent to prison and a 20-month median across all 94 federal districts. Restitution was o
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY20 › Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement: Southern District of New York
In brief: 2,530 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, and embezzlement offenses in the Southern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 87% received a prison term, with a median of 15 months, compared with 73% sent to prison and a 20-month median across all 94 federal districts. Restitution was ordered for 78%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 2,530 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.
A Higher Share Sent to Prison, a Shorter Median Term
2,207 of the 2,530 people (87%) received a prison term, and 229 (9%) received probation only. Across all 94 districts, 73% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
The median prison term here was 15 months, which is lower than the 20-month median across all 94 districts. A quarter received 36 months or more, and a quarter received 0.1 months or less. For all offenses in this district, the median was 33 months.
Restitution and Fines
Restitution was ordered for 1,971 people (78%). A fine was ordered for 251 people (10%). Restitution is money ordered to be paid to victims.
2,084 people (82%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months.
What the Offense Type Includes
"Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's category. The primary guideline for most people was §2B1.1 (Larceny, Embezzlement, and Other Forms of Theft), with 2,380 people. §2B1.4 (Insider Trading) applied to 83 people, and §2X1.1 (Attempt, Solicitation, or Conspiracy (Not Covered by a Specific Offense Guideline)) to 4 people.
These cases were 21% of the 12,035 people sentenced in the district over fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Guilty Pleas Compared With Trials
2,388 people (94%) pleaded guilty, and 142 were convicted after a trial. The plea rate was 96% across all 94 districts.
After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 14 months. After a trial it was 42 months, based on 138 people who were convicted at trial and sent to prison. Among the guilty pleas, 81% came with a written plea agreement and 19% were straight pleas.
The data cannot show why the trial median is higher, because it does not describe how the cases differ.
Where Sentences Fell Against the Guideline Range
Of 2,524 people with the information, 23% (580) were sentenced within the guideline range. 20% (517) were below the range at the government's request, and 56% (1,404) were below it without a government request. Less than 1% (23) were above it.
The within-range share was 45% across all 94 districts and 22% for all offenses in this district. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 283 of the 2,522 people with that information (11%).
Yearly Counts and Medians
The district sentenced 331 people in this offense type in fiscal year 2016 and 177 in fiscal year 2025. The median prison term was 12 months in fiscal year 2016 and 21 months in fiscal year 2025, and it was 12 months again in fiscal year 2019.
The table shows every year from 2016 to 2025. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September, and the records cannot show what explains the changes from year to year.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 331 | 12 months | 97% |
| 2017 | 287 | 15 months | 95% |
| 2018 | 273 | 18 months | 95% |
| 2019 | 307 | 12 months | 93% |
| 2020 | 194 | 15 months | 92% |
| 2021 | 178 | 13 months | 93% |
| 2022 | 251 | 18 months | 95% |
| 2023 | 268 | 20 months | 94% |
| 2024 | 264 | 18 months | 94% |
| 2025 | 177 | 21 months | 92% |
Criminal History and Limits
79% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category (Category I), and 2% were in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are missing, and prison terms are those imposed rather than time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement" (2,530). 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 Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the Southern District of New York, 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.