Alan Hevesi pleaded guilty this morning to one count of defrauding the government, a Class E felony, and resigned his post, marking the end a four-month scandal that brought down one of the stateÂ’s top elected officials. Hevesi was booked, fingerprinted and released on his own recognizance. | Hevesi was booked, fingerprinted and released on his own recognizance. He is due back Feb. 9 for sentencing. He must pay a $5,000 fine in addition to the more than $200,000 restitution he has already paid. He also agreed to resign from his post effective immediately, and resign from his new term, to which he was re-elected with 57 percent this November, effective 12:01 a.m. Jan. 1, 2007.
Appearing before Albany County Judge Stephen W. Herrick, Hevesi, 66, a Democrat whose job was to be the top watchdog over state agencies, admitted he had state security workers drive his wife and attend to her personal needs, and that he didnÂ’t intend to pay for it. He said there were security concerns for Carol Hevesi, but the work of these taxpayer-funded employees went beyond that. |