NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Former Brooklyn Councilman Chaim Deutsch was sentenced Thursday to three months in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding the government out of roughly $82,000 in taxes, Brooklyn Paper reported.
Deutsch, 52, appeared in Manhattan federal District Court where he was also slapped with a year of supervised release, a $5,500 fine, and another $107,000 in restitution for filing false returns for the 2013 through 2015 tax years.
The southern Brooklyn politician submitted fraudulent income and business expenses for the real estate firm he owned, Chasa Management. He was ousted from his position in the City Council in April after he pleaded guilty to the crime.
“I want to apologize to the court, my family, my former staff from the City Council’s office, and most of all, my former constituents of District 48,” Deutsch said in court, reported Brooklyn Paper.
“I apologize for the conduct that brings me to my sentencing today. I was wrong for what I did. I should never have tried to avoid paying my fair share of taxes. I’ll have to live with these bad decisions for the rest of my life.”
Deutsch was elected in 2013 as a right-leaning Democrat representing neighborhoods like Midwood and Sheepshead bay.
The charge against Deutsch carried a maximum sentence of one year in prison.
In the race to replace Deutsch, Democrat Steven Saperstein will face Republican Inna Vernikov in the general election this November.
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