A judge called the founder of Students for Trump a “cold-blooded fraudster” during his sentencing on Tuesday.
John Lambert, 25, was sentenced to 13 months in prison for posing as a lawyer and bilking clients out of $46,000. He pleaded guilty in 2019 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, according to New York Daily News.
Lambert pretended to be a Manhattan-based attorney named Eric Pope. He touted fraudulent degrees from New York University and the University of Pennsylvania. Lambert told his clients he had 15 years of experience.
“Mr. Lambert took his money and did nothing,” Judge Valerie E. Caproni wrote. “Mr. Lambert did not even have the common decency to make up an excuse and tell the victim to hire another attorney.”
His victims hired him for legal advice thinking he was Pope, and he scammed a total of $46,000 from them. He ran the scam from 2016 to 2018. According to prosecutors, Lambert created fake websites, lawyer profiles, and phone numbers.
Ahead of the 2016 elections, Lambert founded Students for Trump alongside Twitter personality Ryan Fournier. The organization has become part of Turning Points USA.
Lambert also expressed that he no longer supports Donald Trump.
