Posted by | Ray Cornelius
Apollo Nida, husband of celebrity attorney and RHOA Phaedra Parks, was sentenced to eight years in prison today on charges involving bank, mail and wire fraud and ID theft.
According to the AJC, Federal Court Judge Charles Pannell issued the eight-year sentence to the reality star because of his four-year fraud and theft scheme of more than 50 individuals. Reportedly, Pannell could have sentenced him from 92 to 115 months but decided not to because white collar criminals tend to have a higher rate of repeating the same crime.
It is also being reported that Nida’s attorney, Thomas Bever attempted to get the sentence reduced on grounds of an unstable family life. Bever even included testimony from Nida’s mother Katrina Toohey, who admitted to being a bad parent and addicted to cocaine. However, Judge Pannell felt that was not a big enough factor considering Nida’s current age of 35. Bever also requested that his client be placed in a facility close to his wife and their two young sons and reiterated that Parks was in no way affiliated with any of the crimes. She was also not present at the sentencing.
“Today’s sentencing exemplifies impartial justice regardless of economic class or perceived celebrity status. Nida’s sentence should be an eye opener for other like-minded criminals who scheme to steal victims’ identities, defraud them and ignore the consequences of their actions,” said Reginald G. Moore, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office, in a press release.
If Nida plays it cool behind bars he may be eligible for decreasing his sentence by one year and finishing it out at a halfway house. It is likely that he will report to prison within three to six weeks.
Stay tuned…
