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Judge Gives 37-Year Term to N.J. Fraudster Whose Sentence Was Commuted by Trump

Judge Michael Shipp also ordered $44.3 million in restitution due immediately.

Overview

  • Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein, 51, of Lakewood and also known as Mike Konig, was sentenced Friday in federal court in Trenton.
  • A jury convicted him in March of defrauding investors of about $35 million through false promises of deals for scarce medical supplies, baby formula and first-aid kits purportedly bound for Ukraine.
  • Prosecutors say he resumed orchestrating fraud shortly after his January 2021 release under a presidential commutation.
  • Court documents quote Weinstein telling associates he "finagled, and Ponzied, and lied to people to cover us."
  • His two prior investor-fraud cases caused roughly $230 million in losses and resulted in a 24-year sentence that Trump commuted to time served.