Andy living the good life

From the Daily News:

While sitting around around doing nothing during hours he should be performing community service, disgraced ex-pol Andrew Stein is also on the city's dime.

The former City Council president, Manhattan borough president and state assemblyman is collecting a public pension of $61,060 based on his 25 years of public service, the Daily News has learned.

Despite Stein's guilty plea in March on a multi-million-dollar tax dodge, there's nothing the city can do about it.

Stein was caught lying to the feds about Ponzi schemer Kenneth Starr but was allowed to cop a plea on a misdemeanor tax charge.

He was sentenced to 500 hours of community service, but The News reported this week that he relaxes during much of the time that he's supposed to be working.

The News spent hours watching him at an East Harlem assisted living facility where he should be pitching in.

Instead, he largely chatted on the phone and read a thick book on World War II history.

Stein stays out of jail

From CBS:

A judge has decided that a once-prominent New York City politician can serve 500 hours of community service rather than jail time for income tax evasion.

Magistrate Judge Ronald Ellis imposed the sentence Tuesday after former New York City Council President Andrew Stein apologized and said he’ll live with the pain of his misdeeds for the rest of his life.

“I’m extremely sorry for the mistakes I made and I look forward to making a contribution again,” Stein said.

Ellis said he had planned to sentence Stein to prison but changed his mind after he listened to arguments on Stein’s behalf.

Give me a break.

Former Council President indicted

From the NY Times:

Andrew J. Stein, a former City Council president, assemblyman and Manhattan borough president who left politics in 1994, has been arrested along with a Manhattan financial adviser who has celebrity clients. Court documents said the financial adviser, Kenneth I. Starr, was charged with a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme.

Mr. Stein was charged with making false statements to the Internal Revenue Service. Court documents say he used about $1.6 million from a company created through Mr. Starr to cover “extravagant personal expenses,” including hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit card bills.

When I saw the headline stating that an ex-borough president had been indicted, I was really hoping it was Claire.

Oh well...

BRING IN THE FEDS.