SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Two defiant brothers accused of directing a yearlong crime spree across upstate New York were sentenced Tuesday to a combined 210 years in prison by a federal judge exasperated by their courtroom antics.
The brothers, who defended themselves in court, were accused of sometimes posing as police to steal drugs from other dealers.
"Because you attempted to make a mockery of our justice system, you have bought yourself what amounts to a life sentence in prison when you could have been out in a few years," Senior U.S. District Judge Frederick Scullin Jr. told Gregory Thomas as he sentenced the 27-year-old man to a mandatory minimum of 155 years in prison without parole.
"This is the longest sentence the court has ever imposed or ever hopes to impose on any human being _ but you give me no choice," Scullin said. "By your intentional and irrational arrogance, you have done this to yourself."
Minutes before, Scullin sentenced Gerald Thomas Jr., 26, to 55 years in prison without parole.
Details here from the AP via Newday.com.