I thought it was standard federal prosecution practice to put up huge potential sentencing numbers, then negotiate downwards in hopes of securing a swift process, and therefore the initial indictment-implied sentencing number carries very little context?
Annoyingly, news outlets just recycle the hype. Tired of everything being exaggerated for attention in modern society, this is one reason faith in social institutions is on the wane.
This is the rare occasion where the hype sentence might actually give you the spirit of how serious the charges are; he's "really exploring the space", as Bruce Dickinson might say, of how severe you can make a wire fraud charge be.
