Guide Note

Lou Pearlman was the manager of the boy-bands *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys. He was arrested for money laundering and conspiracy in March of 2008.

On May 21, 2008, he was handed the maximum sentence of 25 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to cheating investors and banks out of over $300 million.

Fast Facts

1. Entertainment manager
2. Born: June 19, 1954
3. Birthname: Louis Jay Pearlman
4. Birthplace: New York City, New York
5. Managed *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys
6. Arrested in March 2008
7. Sentenced to 25 years in prison on May 21, 2008
8. Rumored to be a pedophile
9. Cousin is Art Garfunkel

The first lawsuit against Pearlman was filed by the members of the Backstreet Boys. They claimed their contract was unfair. Pearlman had been paying himself as a producer, as their manager, and a separate check to himself as the sixth member of the group.

Teen pop star Aaron Carter filed a suit against him in 2002, claiming he was cheated out of a large sum of money, but the case settled out of court.

The scam that cost him 25 years stemmed from swindling friends, banks and investors out of $300 million over a course of nearly two decades. He scammed them into investing into two bogus companies. The judge who sentenced him said his sentence could be reduced by one month, for every million dollars he paid back to those he scammed.