The last defendant in the Bernalillo County Metro Courthouse scandal pleaded guilty on Wednesday, The Associated Press is reporting.
Michael Murphy’s plea is the final chapter in a case that also saw the felony conviction of former state Senate President Pro Tem Manny Aragon and several others.
“We got eight convictions. It’s absolutely a victory for us,” the news service quoted Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Yarbrough as saying after Murphy pleaded guilty to accepting a $20,000 check he knew came from illegal funds from one of the other defendants in the case.
Murphy could face up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but no sentencing date has been set. Murphy’s attorney was quoted by the news service as saying he will ask for probation instead of jail time, arguing that, while Murphy did something illegal, he was not a central figure in the scheme.
The group bilked taxpayers out of more than $4 million by padding and falsifying invoices related to the construction of the metro courthouse. Aragon was instrumental in securing funding for the purpose of stealing it.