Anne Hathaway’s former boyfriend Raffaello Follieri pleaded guilty to eight counts of wire fraud, five counts of money laundering and conspiracy in Manhattan District Court this morning. As part of his plea, he also agreed to pay back $2 million. He now faces 5 years and 3 months is prison and could be deported as another part of the plea.

“I did not have investor authorization to use the money that way,” the 30-year-old Follieri stated after pleading guilty to all 14 counts stemming from his June 24 bust. “I knew what I did was wrong.”

Follieri has been sitting “miserably” behind bars since his arrest due his inability to pony up $21 million in bail.

Follieri’s attorney, Flora Edwards, told Judge John Koeltl that his client was having a “difficult time” in prison and that the past two-and-a-half months have been “very hard on him.”

As a result, his sentencing hearing has been moved up from December to Oct. 3

As it is, Follieri’s plea was originally expected to be entered on Tuesday, but his hearing was briefly postponed to allow for last-minute negotiations. Should the Italian entrepreneur have taken his chances at trial, he could have faced up to nine years behind bars.

Anne Hathaway’s break-up with her Italian flame Raffaello Follieri may have been  timed too conveniently. Friends of the ex-couple are now pointing fingers at Anne for outing out Follieri and turning him in to authorities for all of his alleged fraudulent business dealings.

A source tells the New York Daily News:

“It makes sense. She’s referred to as his former girlfriend in the indictment even though her spokesman never confirmed they broke up. I think that in return for her cooperation, the feds held off on arresting Follieri until she was out of the country.”A spokesperson for Hathaway has declined to comment on Follieri’s legal troubles.
The 29-year-old remains behind bars until he can post $21 million bail.
A status hearing for Follieri has been set for next month (July).

New York State General’s Office is investigation the Follieri Foundation, a foundation run by Anne Hathaway’s boyfriend of 3 years, Raffaello Follieri, that helps fund vaccines for impoverished children in the Third World, per the organization’s website.

Hathaway has done outreach work for the organization as well as sat on the board of directors up until sometime last year.

The exact nature of the inquiry is currently unknown. The Attorney General’s Office has confirmed that it issued subpoenas for various financial records.

“Since she is no longer associated with the foundation, why would you expect her to be familiar with all of this?” the actress’ rep tole the New York Post when asked about Hathaway’s knowledge of the investigation.

A rep for Follieri said the 29-year-old businessman “looks forward to concluding this matter in a timely and expeditious manner…so that he may continue to fulfill his ongoing philanthropic endeavors worldwide.”

“Raffaello Follieri and his attorney, Cyrus Vance [Jr.], have been cooperating fully with the Attorney General’s Office to satisfy their routine inquiry,” the rep said.

This is Follieri’s second time being investigated. He was cited in April for bouncing a $215,000 check to an associate. Criminal charges were dropped after he turned himself in to the NYPD and made arrangements to settle the debt.

He was also ordered to pay $240,000 to a Washington, D.C.-based public relations firm that repped him while he was fighting a lawsuit brought by real-estate magnate Ron Burkle, who accused Follieri of misusing at least $1.3 million of $55 million that was supposed to be put toward a joint property venture.

In the suit, Burkle alleged Follieri had racked up inappropriate expenses for, among other things, “excessive use and inappropriate private jet travel for Follieri, his actress girlfriend and his father.”

The two sides settled earlier this year.