Appeals Court Denies ‘Fat Leonard’ Request to Reduce 15-year Sentence

Undated photo of Leonard Francis A federal appellate court denied convicted Navy fraud mastermind Leonard “Fat Leonard” Francis’ appeal of his 15-year prison sentence, according to court documents released this week. Francis, 61, asked the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in November to review the sentence handed down by a federal judge in late 2024, which included a $20 million restitution to the Navy and a $150,000 fine.

Among his arguments, Francis’ attorneys contended the sentence was “substantially unreasonable.” But following a Dec. 10 hearing in Pasadena, Calif., a three-member appellate panel upheld the sentence. “Francis’ sentence is not ‘substantially unreasonable’,” the three-judge panel wrote in its Dec.

19, 2025, decision, which was publicly released Jan. 12. “His sentence is