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A Students for Trump co-founder was sentenced Tuesday to 13 months in prison for posing as a lawyer to steal money from his victims.
Judge Valerie Caproni handed down the sentence to John Lambert, 25, who pleaded guilty to wire fraud in August 2019.
Lambert, who promoted the youth political group during Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, was ordered to forfeit over $46,000 and pay more $21,000 in restitution to his victims.
From August 2016 through April 2018, according to prosecutors, Lambert claimed on the internet that he was a prominent New York attorney with hundreds of clients, including “tech moguls” and “entrepreneurs.”
Using the alias “Eric Pope,” he duped at least six people and corporations into paying him for supposed legal services, prosecutors said.
At Tuesday’s sentencing, Caproni credited Lambert with keeping college students engaged in government by promoting former President Donald Trump on campuses.
But the judge said Lambert then used his leadership skills to inflict harm.
“This crime took a lot of thought,” Caproni said.
Lambert told Caproni he had “sincere regret,” and expressed his desire to apologize to his victims.
“My life will be forever marked by this poor choice,” Lambert said. He added that he was spending “countless hours in prayer to rid myself of the demons.”
According to Lambert’s lawyer, Gary Peters, his client “dropped out” of the political group soon after Trump’s 2017 inauguration over disappointment with some of the former president’s early moves.
With Post wires
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