Former New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin sentenced to 10 years

Ex-New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Wednesday.

According to The New York Times, the former mayor was found guilty in February on 20 counts of accepting bribes from contractors looking for city work. The bribes included cash and cross-country trips.

Nagin was sentenced in New Orleans federal court by Judge Ginger Berrigan.

USA Today noted that the businessman–turned-politician has been ordered to report to prison on Sept. 8. In addition, he must pay $82,000 in restitution.

The 58-year-old garnered national attention after the Louisiana city was hit by the devastating Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Most residents believed that he mishandled the situation in the aftermath of the storm and were happy to see him out of office by 2010.

During sentencing Nagin briefly spoke to thank his staff and maintain his innocence.

The Times-Picayune reported that members of the two-term mayor’s family sent written letters to the judge also declaring Nagin’s innocence.

“The local federal agents of New Orleans have large resources and can indict anything. In this case, it's as an innocent man, my father … Ray Nagin,” his son Jeremy Nagin wrote.

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