Fyre Festival: Founder Billy McFarland pleads guilty to fraud

Fyre Festival organiser Billy McFarland has pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges and has subsequently agreed to serve up to 10 years in prison.

The 26-year-old entered the plea with prosecutors suggesting an eight-to-10-year sentence.

McFarland agreed to the plea deal in Manhattan for lying to investors and sending fake documents.

"I deeply regret my actions, and I apologise to my investors, team, family and supporters who I let down", McFarland said to US District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald.

McFarland said he wanted to make "a legitimate festival" when he was planning Fyre Festival, making it an additional component to an app he made to help concert promoters and talent bookers.

"I grossly underestimated the resources that would be necessary to hold an event of this magnitude", he admitted. "In an attempt to raise what I thought were needed funds, I lied to investors about various aspects of Fyre Media and my personal finances. Those lies included false documents and information."

McFarland also admitted to giving fake information about Fyre Media's financial status to a ticket vendor last April to convince the vendor to buy $2m (£1,440,000) in advance tickets.

Set on the island of Exumas in the Bahamas, Fyre Festival was initially described as the "culture experience of the decade" as a luxury event during the last two weekends of April and May in 2017.

The event was promoted on social media with models like Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner and Emily Ratajkowski trying to lure people into buying tickets ranging from $1,200 to over $100,000.

The festival boasted a lineup of Major Lazer, Disclosure, Lil Yachty, Blink-182, Migos and more.

When concertgoers arrived in the Bahamas, they learned that Blink-182 and Migos had cancelled, and they were stuck in a Lord of the Flies nightmare.

Gourmet food included slices of cheese on white bread and luxurious accommodations included flimsy, leaking tents.

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The hashtag #fyrefraud began trending after attendees were stranded on the island or in airports on their way to the festival.

Since June 2017, McFarland has been free on $300,000 bail.

He was due to be sentenced on 21 June.

Additional reporting by AP