NYC VIP Access purported to be in the business of obtaining and selling for profit tickets to various exclusive events such as fashion galas, music festivals, and sporting events, including the following events, among others: the 2018 Met Gala, Burning Man 2018, Coachella 2018, the 2018 Grammy Awards, Super Bowl LII, and a Cleveland Cavaliers game and team dinner with Lebron James.
In connection with that case, McFARLAND was on pretrial release from July 1, 2017, to June 12, 2018.įrom at least in or about late 2017, up to and including at least in or about March 2018, McFARLAND owned and operated NYC VIP Access, a company based in New York, New York.
On March 6, 2018, McFARLAND pled guilty before Judge Buchwald to one count of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud over 80 investors in Fyre Media and Fyre Festival LLC of over $24 million, and one count of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud a ticket vendor for the Fyre Festival of $2 million, in the case captioned United States v. McFarland’s fraudulent schemes cost real people real money, and now he faces real time in federal prison for his crimes.”Īccording to the allegations in the Complaint and Superseding Information to which McFARLAND pled guilty, as well as statements made in court: These customers later learned that the tickets didn’t exist, and that this was just another fraud in McFarland’s disturbing pattern of deception. McFarland concealed his association with NYC VIP Access so that he could solicit customers of Fyre Festival and his other company Magnises to buy tickets without raising suspicion. While that fraud case was pending, McFarland engaged in yet another scam, purporting to sell tickets through a company called NYC VIP Access to exclusive events, such as the 2018 Met Gala, Burning Man 2018, Coachella 2018, the 2018 Grammy Awards, and the Super Bowl. Berman said: “William ‘Billy’ McFarland, CEO of Fyre Media, previously pled guilty to defrauding investors of Fyre Media and the infamous Fyre Festival and a ticket vendor of over $26 million. Sentencing is scheduled for Septemat 3:30 p.m. McFARLAND also affirmed his previously entered guilty plea to one count of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud a ticket vendor for the Fyre Festival. (“Fyre Media”), as well as its subsidiary (“Fyre Festival LLC”), which was formed to hold a music festival over two weekends in the Bahamas. During today’s plea proceeding, McFARLAND affirmed his previously entered guilty plea to one count of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud investors in a company controlled by MCFARLAND, Fyre Media Inc. McFARLAND also pled guilty to one count of bank fraud for writing a check with the name and account number of one of his employees without authorization, and one count of making false statements to a federal law enforcement agent in which he, among other things, falsely denied the wire fraud and bank fraud conduct to which he now has pled guilty. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that WILLIAM McFARLAND pled guilty today to one count of wire fraud, in connection with his operation of a sham ticket scheme in which he purported to sell tickets to exclusive fashion, music, and sporting events though NYC VIP Access, a company controlled by McFARLAND.
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