AP

Barriero was facing a sentence of 12 to 18 months in prison, but a prosecutor asked for a lighter sentence because Barriero’s cooperation led Hubbard to plead guilty to wire fraud in 2016. Hubbard was sentenced earlier this month to nearly five years in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Wallenstein requested that Barriero’s sentence be reduced because of his cooperation. Hubbard duped Barriero, who believed they could pull off the concert, Wallenstein said, and led him to believe he was in touch with Wonder’s management.

Barriero was misled and “put out to be the fall guy,” Wallenstein said.

Barriero’s federal public defender, Peter Wolff, asked for an entire sentence of home confinement.

“I am sorry for the embarrassment I helped cause the university,” Barriero said.

Thoughts on this or any other story? Write a Letter to the Editor. Send to news@civilbeat.org and put Letter in the subject line. 200 words max. You need to use your name and city and include a contact phone for verification purposes. And you can still comment on stories on our Facebook page.