Former Senate Republican Leader Joseph L. Bruno was convicted of federal corruption charges Monday for exploiting his political office to enrich himself through side 'consultant' work that conflicted with his role as one of the most powerful men in New York state government. The 80-year-old Republican from Brunswick, N.Y., sat quietly as the jury of seven women and five men rendered its verdict about 4:15 p.m.: Guilty on two counts of mail and wire fraud. The verdict followed nearly seven full days and some 55 hours of deliberations, which began Nov. 24, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. The jury took a five-day break over the holidays and resumed deliberations all last week and Monday. Bruno, acquitted of five counts, was found guilty in connection with 11 payments he received from companies controlled by businessman Jared Abbruzzese of Loudonville, N.Y. The jury found Bruno did not perform legitimate work for the Abbruzzese companies -- and that the payments were, in effect, gifts. He was also convicted of failing to disclose his participation in a partnership with Abbruzzese that involved thoroughbred race horses. 'It goes without saying that I'm very, very disappointed in the verdict that I just heard and the legal process is going to continue,' Bruno told reporters outside the courthouse. 'And in my mind and in my heart,' Bruno added, 'it is not over until it's over. And I think it's far from over.' He then wished reporters good night and holiday before walking off with his son, Kenneth Bruno, and spokesman Kris Thompson. They entered a black car and sped off. The jury reached a verdict after asking for several 'read-backs' last week of testimony from a number of witnesses. They included Abbruzzese, former Senate counsel Francis Gluchowski and former Senate counsel Francis 'Tim' Collins, now a Court of Claims judge in Saratoga County. Federal prosecutors in Albany accused Bruno of violating the U.S. theft of 'honest services' law, an allegation that prompted the iconic Capital Region politician to stage daily news conferences asserting his innocence. He had broken no laws, Bruno repeatedly said since being indicted in January. But the verdict immediately marked the downfall of a storied political career for a man who rose from poverty to become a successful businessman and state senator so renowned, the local minor league stadium in Troy, N.Y. -- 'The Joe' -- bore his name. The silver-haired Bruno spent more than 13 years leading the state Senate, which had long been under GOP control. That position made Bruno one of the three most powerful men in state government alongside the state government and the speaker of the state Assembly. The FBI started investigated him in December 2005 after learning of flights Bruno took in a private jet from Schenectady, N.Y., to LaGuardia Airport in Queens, flights chartered by Abbruzzese. It was set up for Bruno after he could not secure a state-owned helicopter. Abbruzzese would eventually be linked to four of the eight 'honest services' counts against Bruno. The businessman paid Bruno $20,000 a month to be a consultant at Abbruzzese-backed companies starting in early 2004. Over three weeks of testimony, federal prosecutors questioned what work Bruno did to justify earning such money from Abbruzzese. They produced evidence to show others at the corporations questioned what Bruno did. Bruno initially worked for Abbruzzese at two companies, Communication Technology Advisors and Capital & Technology Advisors. He later worked for the Motient Corp. and TerreStar. When the employment dollars ceased because the consultant arrangement stopped, Abbruzzese paid Bruno $80,000 for a horse considered all but worthless, a transaction the prosecution equated to money laundering. In his trial testimony, Abbruzzese said Bruno appeared at swanky dinners in New York City as a consultant and introduced Abbruzzese to celebrities -- including Donald Trump -- to help him with possible development of golf courses in Florida. Prosecutors had another view. The contended that Bruno's employment with Abbruzzese was an influence-peddling scheme, and that the senator was effectively being paid gifts. They noted Abbruzzeze had helped found the Troy, N.Y.-based Evident Technologies, which was earlier approved for $500,000 in state grants through Bruno. Assistant U.S. Attorney William Pericak, who prosecuted the trial with Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Coombe, told jurors that Bruno reaped $440,000 from Abbruzzese's companies -- part of more than $3.1 money made as part of his alleged scheme. Consultant work also reaped Bruno $1.3 million from Wright Investors' Services in Milford, Conn., whose clients included labor unions that had business before New York state. Bruno's solicitation of the unions while working for Wright was a conflict of interest, prosecutors said. To justify the work, Bruno's defense said he relied on a 1993 opinion from the Legislative Ethics Commission. It had cleared Bruno to work for the Albany-based McGinn-Smith and Co. which paid Bruno $632,000. But prosecutors said Bruno never fully disclosed the depth of what he was doing and that he was approaching unions with matters before the Legislature. Bruno was also charged with honest services fraud in connection with the $483,000 from Westchester County businessman Leonard Fassler and $270,000 from Manhattan businessman Russell Ball and an 'oral understanding' to make 10 percent from the Memphis, Tenn.-based Asentinel, which made a presentation to state government in Albany. Nothing had been placed in writing. The next stage for Bruno is an asset forfeiture proceeding in connection with the guilty verdict. 