Former Florida Republican chairman gets 18-months in jail for grand theft

The former chairman of the Florida Republican Party was sentenced on Wednesday for stealing $125,000 in party funds, according to the StarTribune.

Circuit Judge Marc Lubet sentenced Jim Greer to 18 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to five charges.

"I feel that this crime deserves prison," Lubet told Greer. "You egregiously violated a position of trust."

Greer was arrested in 2010 and charged with one count of organized scheme to defraud, four counts of felony grand theft and one count of money laundering. The organized fraud charge was dropped as part of his plea deal.

Greer was accused of secretly funneling party money to a company that he partially owned. Victory Strategies was paid to do campaign work for the Florida Republican Party, but Greer kept most of the money for himself.

Months before his arrest, Greer resigned from his position as chairman. He had faced harsh criticism for his spending practices.

"They wanted to oust me as chairman and if that doesn’t work, burn the house down and try to destroy the Republican Party," he said at the time.

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[Corruption photo via Shutterstock]