Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, recommended that a lobbyist who admitted to embezzling more than $1 million from his employer’s political committee receive no more than 24 months in prison, according to a sentencing memorandum filed Thursday with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Jonas Murphy, the now-former director of government affairs at the National Venture Capital Association, pleaded guilty in December for crimes related to stealing from the trade association’s political committee, Venture PAC. Murphy spent the money on items such as an automotive club membership, jewelry and clothing, according to the sentencing memo.
NOTUS first revealed Murphy’s embezzlement, detailed in a plea deal signed on Dec. 11, 2025. According to the plea deal, Murphy’s crime carries a maximum sentence of 10 years and fine of $250,000.