Billy McFarland

Fyre Festival Founder Billy McFarland Scores Early Prison Release

Home / Breaking News / Fyre Festival Founder Billy McFarland Scores Early Prison Release

By Russ Weakland on May 18, 2022 at 6:38 PM EDT
Updated on May 18, 2022 at 6:46 PM EDT

Based on online reports, Fyre Festival founder Billy McFarland has been released from prison early, but that isn't the end of the story as it appears he was transferred on March 30th of 2020 to community confinement where he is expected to remain in a halfway house or his own home till at least August of this year.

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Billy McFarland Was Hit With 6-Year Sentence

McFarland who organized the 2017 music fest in the Bahamas ended up pleading guilty to two counts of wire fraud. After being promised an amazing festival with celebrities, tremendous dining, and accommodations, people were left instead – stranded in the Bahamas sleeping in FEMA tents and dining on food the likes of cheese sandwiches.

Lawyers for McFarland tried to spring him out of jail in 2020 to no avail but now it seems like he is finally getting his wishes several years after the request was put out there. Though devastating to many, it also appears that McFarland was devastated with how everything turned out as well.

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Billy McFarland Apologizes For Disastrous Fyre Festival

McFarland actually apologized for the outcome of the Fyre Festival that ultimately led to his incarceration.

“I am incredibly sorry for my collective actions and will right the wrongs I have delivered to my family, friends, partners, associates and, you, the general public,” McFarland told PEOPLE in an interview from prison after he was sentenced to six years behind bars.

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Billy McFarland and Ja Rule
Wikipedia
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He continued, “I’ve always sought — and dreamed — to accomplish incredible things by pushing the envelope to deliver for a common good, but I made many wrong and immature decisions along the way and I caused agony. As a result, I’ve lived every day in prison with pain, and I will continue to do so until I am able to make up for some of this harm through work and actions that society finds respectable.”

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McFarland was previously ordered to pay $26 million in restitution for his role in the epic fail that was the Fyre Festival that took place in the spring of 2017.“I’m devastated, but accepting, and I’ll use this opportunity to live my apology and become the family member, friend, business person and good citizen I should have been all along,” he added. “I’d like to thank everyone who has supported me every step of the way. Your love keeps me focused. Your hope keeps me motivated. Earning your forgiveness will fuel the rest of my days.”In addition to the charges from the festival, Billy McFarland also was charged with two counts of bank fraud related a scheme involving fake tickets to events.

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