Man Who Brought You 'NSync, Backstreet Boys Dies in Prison

Lou Pearlman ran a giant Ponzi scheme, in addition to the boy bands
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 21, 2016 9:13 AM CDT
Man Who Brought You 'NSync, Backstreet Boys Dies in Prison
In this 2007 file photo, Lou Pearlman poses outside his office's at Church Street Station in Orlando, Fla.   (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)

The man who brought about the rise of the boy band—notably 'NSync, the Backstreet Boys, and O-Town—died Friday in prison, reports the Orlando Sentinel. Lou Pearlman was serving a 25-year sentence for his role in a $300 million Ponzi scheme when he died of unknown causes at age 62. Pearlman was convicted in 2008, a year after he declared bankruptcy, and two years after his scheme unraveled. Tweeted Lance Bass of his death: "Word is that #LouPearlman has passed away. He might not have been a stand up businessman, but I wouldn't be doing what I love today wout his influence. RIP Lou." (More Lou Pearlman stories.)

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