Bell councilman Victor Bello gets year in jail, probation

BELL, Calif. (KABC) -- Former Bell City Councilman Victor Bello was sentenced Friday for his role in the city's corruption scandal. Bello was sentenced to a year in county jail and five years' probation. He was also ordered to pay $177,600 in restitution and perform 500 hours of community service. He was given credit for 340 days of time served while awaiting trial.

Bello is the last of seven convicted former Bell officials to be sentenced for misappropriating public funds.

Thursday a judge sentenced former Bell Mayor Oscar Hernandez to one year in county jail and five years' probation.

The sentencing of Bello marked the end of the largest corruption case in Los Angeles history, according to prosecutors who spent four years taking it through the courts.

Prosecutors said the scam cost Bell more than $5.5 million and drove a city where more than a quarter of the residents live below the federal poverty line to the brink of bankruptcy.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.