Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the District of Connecticut, FY2016–2025
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 64 people sentenced for money laundering in the District of Connecticut in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 30 months, compared with 40 months in all 94 districts. Sentences were within the guideline range for 22%.
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In brief: The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 64 people sentenced for money laundering in the District of Connecticut in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 30 months, compared with 40 months in all 94 districts. Sentences were within the guideline range for 22%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 64 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 Median Term Below the National Figure
Among the 56 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 30 months (2.5 years). A quarter received 55 months or more, and a quarter received 12.8 months or less.
For money laundering in all districts, the median was 40 months. For all offenses in the District of Connecticut, the median was 36 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
Prison and Probation
Of the 64 people, 56 (88%) received a prison term. Another 7 (11%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The national rate of prison sentences for this offense type was also 88%.
After prison, 54 people (84%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 13 people (20%), and restitution for 26 (41%).
Trials Were More Common Than in the District Overall
Of the 64 people, 54 (84%) pleaded guilty and 10 were convicted after a trial. Nationally, 93% of money laundering cases ended in a guilty plea, and the district-wide rate for all offenses was 96%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 24 months. After a trial it was 36 months, based on 9 people. Among guilty pleas, 98% had a written plea agreement.
A mandatory minimum applied to 8 people (13%).
Guideline Range Positions
The guideline range is the range calculated under the federal Sentencing Guidelines. In this group, 22% of sentences (14 people) were within it. The national figure was 25%.
A total of 28% (18 people) were below the range at the government's request. The largest group, 50% (32 people), was below the range without a government request. None (0%) were above the range.
What Counts as Money Laundering
"Money Laundering" is the Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments), used for 62 people. Another 2 people were sentenced under §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements).
These cases were 2% of the 3,174 people sentenced in the district. In criminal history, 75% were in the lowest category and 3% in the highest.
Yearly Counts
Each fiscal year had from 4 to 11 people. The median prison term was 15 months in fiscal years 2021, 2023, and 2025, and 68 months in fiscal year 2017.
The groups are too small for a trend. From fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 30 people were sentenced. From fiscal years 2020 to 2025, 34 people were sentenced.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 26 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2017 | 7 | 68 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2018 | 8 | 18 months | 7 of 8 |
| 2019 | 11 | 18 months | 91% |
| 2020 | 4 | 20 months | 2 of 4 |
| 2021 | 4 | 15 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2022 | 10 | 57 months | 60% |
| 2023 | 4 | 15 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2024 | 4 | 24 months | 3 of 4 |
| 2025 | 8 | 15 months | 8 of 8 |
Limits of the Records
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it. The fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30.
The records do not show the amounts of money involved or the reasons for a sentence.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Connecticut (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Connecticut") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (64). 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 Connecticut, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Connecticut, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Connecticut, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Connecticut, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Connecticut, 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.