Disgraced American Entrepreneur Finally To Begin Eleven Years Sentence This Week

Popular American Entrepreneur  Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes is set to report to federal prison this week.

The disgraced entrepreneur was sentenced to over 11 years in prison and ordered to pay $452m (£365m) with her former business partner Sunny Balwani to dozens of high-profile investors they defrauded through a blood-testing start-up.

It’s a sizeable bill for the former billionaire, who has claimed she does not even have enough money to pay her lawyers.

In US federal court, convicted offenders are sometimes ordered to pay restitution.

This is a reimbursement to victims for lost income, property damage, medical expenses or other financial costs related to the crime.In Holmes’ case, she has been ordered to pay back some of the wealthiest families in America.

After dropping out of Stanford University, she recruited several famous figures to raise money for Theranos, valued at $9bn at its peak.

Donors included former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and the Walton family, known for founding American supermarket chain Walmart.

But after it was revealed her blood-testing technology did not work, many lost a fortune.

From tech star to convicted fraudster
Former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos reportedly gave Holmes $100m while the Theranos founder has been ordered to pay back media mogul Rupert Murdoch $125m, according to court documents.

She will not be able to just declare bankruptcy and shed her debts that way, experts tell the BBC. But victims of her crimes should not get their hopes up about recouping their cash.

A judge has recommended Holmes report to Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, where all inmates are obligated to work and make between 12 cents and $1.15 an hour.

Holmes has acknowledged her dismal financial fate, telling the New York Times this month she will “have to work for the rest of my life” just to pay millions of dollars in legal fees.

But there are a number of reasons why her victims and many others are unlikely to get the money back.

“They’re not going to stop looking,” Ms O’Neill said. “She’s not going to be able to put a dollar in her bank account… without the government seizing it.”