The man behind chart-topping groups the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars for his part in a $300m (£154m) scam.
The band manager defrauded family, friends and both private and corporate investors into investing money into two companies which only existed on paper, and pleaded guilty to the charges in March. in a plea deal, Pearlman testified against his accomplices.
In a statement read out in court, Pearlman apologised to his victims, many of whom were elderly. "Over the past nine months since my arrest, I've come to realise the harm that's been done," he said. "I'm truly sorry and I apologise for what's happened."
Pearlman argued that 25 years would amount to a "sentence to death" for the 53-year-old.
During the sentencing, the judge brought out letters from Pearlman's victims, who included "his family, his close friends and people in their 70s and 80s who have lost their life savings."
"So the sympathy factor doesn't run high with the court."
