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Bell scandal: Last of 7 officials to be sentenced gets 1 year in jail
File photo: Former Bell city manager Robert Rizzo (L) and former council member Victor Bello (R) appear in court with six other current and former City of Bell officials at Los Angeles County Criminal Courts September 22, 2010. On Friday, Aug. 1, 2014, Bello became the last of seven Bell officials accused of public corruption to be sentenced in a criminal trial.
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Former Bell City Councilman Victor Bello was sentenced Friday to one year in county jail and ordered to repay more than $177,000, bringing to an end a string of criminal cases in the corruption scandal that rocked the town in southeast Los Angeles County.
Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy further placed Bello on probation for five years and ordered him to complete 500 hours of community service, according to a statement from the district attorney's office.
Bello was convicted last year along with Mayor Oscar Hernandez, Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo and former council members George Mirabal and George Cole, on charges they stole a total of nearly $1 million.
The DA's office said Bello's salary started at just $434 a month in 1998 but increased to nearly $100,000 a year by the time he resigned his council seat in 2009.
Here are the sentences received by the other ex-Bell officials:
Robert Rizzo, former city manager: 12 years in state prison, nearly $9 million in restitution; sentenced in a separate federal case to 33 months in federal prison on tax fraud charges
Angela Spaccia, former assistant city manager: 11 years, 8 months in prison, more than $8 million in restitution
George Mirabal, former city council member: 1 year in jail, 5 years probation, 1,000 hours community service, $242,293 in restitution
George Cole, former city council member: 180 days home confinement, 5 years probation, 1,000 hours community service, $77,000 in restitution
Teresa Jacobo, former city council member: 1 year in jail, $242,000 in restitution
Oscar Hernandez, former mayor: 1 year in jail, 5 years probation, 1,000 hours community service, $241,000 in restitution
This story has been updated.
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