"If Mr. Rothstein thinks setting up Mr. Settineri is going to get him a get-out-of-jail card, he's sadly mistaken.''

That was Jeff Weiner after Judge Cohen sentenced his client Roberto Settineri to four years (via the Miami Herald):


Defense attorney Jeffrey Weiner and federal prosecutors recommended that Settineri receive four years' imprisonment at his sentencing Wednesday morning in Fort Lauderdale.
The U.S. District Judge James Cohn called it a ``fair resolution.'' The maximum is five years.
In exchange for his guilty plea in August, Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia Stone dropped the original conspiracy charges, which carried up to 20 years in prison.
After Settineri's sentencing, Weiner said that his client could actually be released from prison in about two years. Settineri received credit for eight months of detention since his arrest in March. The judge also allowed him to enter a 500-hour alcohol abuse program in prison, which, if completed, would cut an additional year off his sentence.
Weiner said that while his client said nothing at his sentencing, Settineri took full responsibility and apologized for his wrongdoing in a court filing.
``His life was fine until he made this terrible mistake in judgment,'' Weiner said. ``He thought he was helping a friend in need. He's embarrassed about it.''

Rothstein takes down Mafia player

Curt Anderon and Jay Weaver cover the story of the 4 year deal for Roberto Settineri. Jeff Weiner, Settineri's lawyer, had this to say:

"Our initial intention was to go to trial,'' Weiner said in an interview. ``My client had no criminal record. He was actively targeted and set up by Rothstein.
``But my client made a terrible mistake in judgment by agreeing to help Rothstein,'' he said, pointing out that the FBI's sting generated tape recordings and text messages incriminating his client. ``The bottom line, when the evidence came in . . . it would have been a foolish choice to go to trial at that point.
"[Settineri] took the bait, hook, line and sinker, to help someone he thought was a friend,'' the lawyer added. ``He was one of Rothstein's victims.''