Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025
In fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 81 people were sentenced in the Western District of New York for money laundering offenses. 61 of them (75%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 36 months. Across all 94 federal districts, 88% of people in this offense type were sent to prison and the
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In brief: In fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 81 people were sentenced in the Western District of New York for money laundering offenses. 61 of them (75%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 36 months. Across all 94 federal districts, 88% of people in this offense type were sent to prison and the median prison term was 40 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 81 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.
Prison and Probation in This District
Of the 81 people sentenced, 61 (75%) received a prison term. Another 18 (22%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. In all 94 districts together, 88% of people sentenced for money laundering went to prison, so probation-only sentences were more common in the Western District of New York.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 36 months (3 years). A quarter received 84 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. One person received a life sentence. Prison terms here are the terms imposed, not the time actually served.
Which Guidelines Applied
The U.S. Sentencing Commission sorts every case into an offense type. "Money Laundering" is one of those categories, and it is the Commission's label, not a statute. Each case is also assigned one primary sentencing guideline.
The most common primary guideline was §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments), with 58 people. The next was §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements), with 23 people. Money laundering cases were 2% of the 4,205 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Where Sentences Fell Against the Guideline Range
Most sentences were below the guideline range. 48 people (59%) were sentenced below the range at the government's request, and 10 (12%) were sentenced below it without a government request. 22 (27%) were within the range, and 1 (1%) was above it.
In all 94 districts, 25% of money laundering sentences were within the range, which is about the same as the 27% here. For all offenses in the Western District of New York, 42% were within the range. A sentence below the range at the government's request is a separate category from one below the range without a request, and the records here do not say what led to either.
Guilty Pleas and Trials
76 of the 81 people (94%) pleaded guilty, and 5 were convicted after a trial. Among those who pleaded guilty, 99% had a written plea agreement and 1% entered a straight plea with no agreement.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 33.5 months. After a trial it was 120 months. The trial figure is based on only 5 people, so it describes a very small group and should not be read as a pattern. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 23 of the 81 people (28%).
Year-by-Year Counts
The yearly counts were small and varied. Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 57 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 24 people. The table lists each year that had cases. The table has no row for fiscal year 2024.
Single-year medians rest on a few people in most years and move a great deal from year to year. The table is a record of counts, not a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 19 | 37 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 10 | 60.5 months | 90% |
| 2018 | 16 | 12 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 12 | 63 months | 92% |
| 2020 | 5 | 72 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2021 | 4 | 8.1 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2022 | 10 | 45 months | 90% |
| 2023 | 3 | 89 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2025 | 2 | 50.7 months | 2 of 2 |
Other Sentence Terms
59 people (73%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 36 months. A fine was ordered for 11 people (14%), and restitution for 18 (22%).
On criminal history, 67% were in the lowest category, category I, and 1% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so this measure cannot be compared with military cases.
What the Records Cannot Show
The Commission's data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it, so the numbers say nothing about how many money laundering charges were filed or dropped. The records also do not show the facts of any case, the amount of money involved, or the reasons for any sentence.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (81). 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 Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western 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.