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Rizzo Sentenced To 33 Months In Federal Tax Case

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Former Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison Monday for tax evasion.

Rizzo, 60, pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy charges and filing a false tax return in January.

He must also pay nearly $256,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

Rizzo also faces up to 12 years in prison when he is sentenced Wednesday for his role in the Bell scandal after pleading no contest in state court to 69 counts of corruption in October.

The judge ruled that he must serve his sentence for tax evasion separately from his time in the corruption case.

Last week, Rizzo's administrative assistant, Angela Spaccia, was sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison for her role in the scandal, which inflated the salaries of city administrators.

The scandal drove the city to the brink of bankruptcy, costing Bell taxpayers $15 million.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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