RIVERSIDE (CBS) — A “multi-decorated” 20-year Marine Corps veteran who skimmed nearly $1.7 million from federal contracts tied to shipments of first-aid kits and other equipment to Iraq was sentenced Monday to six years in federal prison.

Capt. Eric Schmidt, 40, told U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips that he could not explain why he defrauded the government and cheated his “brothers in arms” of gear they needed in the field.

The Camp Pendleton Marine could have received up to 20 years behind bars, but Phillips considered his military service and diagnosis as a vet suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder in handing down the sentence that was recommended by federal prosecutors.

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