Former New York City Councilman Larry Seabrook today was sentenced to five years in prison after he was found guilty last year of steering thousands of public dollars for community projects to his girlfriend and family member.

Seabrook was alos fined $619,715, according to NY1′s Grace Rauh, who is reporting from the scene.

The conviction of Seabrook, found guilty of nine corruption counts in federal court during the summer, was yet another victory for US Attorney Preet Bharara when it comes to policing public officials guilty of wrongdoing.

“Councilman Larry Seabrook sacrificed the public trust on the altar of greed. He was a flagrant and serial abuser of City Council discretionary funds in a far too familiar New York tale of corruption,” he said in a statement released earlier this morning. “Today’s sentence finally vindicates the interests of the constituents whose trust he so casually violated by his fraud. We remain committed to making those who are corrupted by power pay the price, and the public can expect more arrests of politicians who have not learned this lesson.”

Share|