NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a former elected official who pleaded guilty to seeking kickbacks from a Hurricane Katrina contractor in suburban New Orleans.
U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. sentenced Joseph Impastato to 18 months in prison and ordered him to pay $3,500 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. Federal prosecutors recommended a two-year prison sentence for the former St. Tammany Parish councilman.
After the August 2005 hurricane, Impastato allegedly used his position to help two of his constituents obtain a contract for storm debris disposal in the parish and then demanded at least a $10,000 share of their profits.
Impastato, who resigned from the parish council in October 2006, also pleaded guilty last year to filing a false 2001 tax return.—-Contact The Daily Reveille news staff at [email protected]