The former city manager of Bell , California , was sentenced Wednesday to 12 years in state prison in a corruption case in which he and several other former city council members were accused of turning taxpayer money into a personal `` piggy bank . '' Robert Rizzo also was ordered Wednesday to repay $ 8.8 million in restitution to the city , prosecutors said . In October , Rizzo pleaded no contest to 69 felony counts of public corruption , 46 counts of misappropriation of public funds , 10 counts of falsification of public records , six counts of perjury and six counts of conflict of interest , prosecutors said . In all , Rizzo , another former city official and five former council members -- all of them now convicted -- stole nearly $ 11 million from the Los Angeles-area city of about 35,000 people , the Los Angeles County District Attorney 's Office said . The corruption case drew national attention for its large-scale theft by so many elected and appointed officials in such a small city . The former officials paid themselves exorbitant salaries for little or no work . Rizzo began working for the city of Bell in 1994 as its chief administrative officer , and his council-approved annual salary rose to $ 300,000 in 2004 , prosecutors said . He began taking home $ 800,000 in `` illegal pay '' by the time he resigned in July 2010 , prosecutors said . Former administrator sues for his salary . Rizzo also paid himself an additional $ 400,000 annually by cashing out unused sick and vacation time that was not council approved , prosecutors said . Rizzo also wrote his own employment contracts and created `` a secret pension fund that would have given him $ 8 million upon retirement , '' prosecutors said . Former District Attorney Steve Cooley , who initially handled the charges , had called the case a `` feeding frenzy of corruption by Bell officials . '' Prosecutors accused the former city officials of turning the city treasury into `` their own piggy bank , which they looted at will . '' In a statement , District Attorney Jackie Lacey said `` Rizzo believed he was above the law . '' `` His greed and total disregard for the hard-working people of Bell have lasting consequences , '' Lacey said . Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy imposed Wednesday 's sentence . Last year , former Mayor Oscar Hernandez , former Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo and former council members George Mirabal , Victor Bello and George Cole were convicted by a jury on several counts of misappropriation of public funds , prosecutors said . The jury , however , acquitted them or were deadlocked on several similar counts , prosecutors said . Prosecutors sought a retrial on those deadlocked charges , but that effort ended this month when the five former council members pleaded no contest to two counts of misappropriation of public funds . Under the plea deal , the five former officials avoided a retrial , but they now could face up to four years in state prison , prosecutors said . The five former elected officials admitted to earning up to $ 100,000 annually for serving on boards or commissions that never met or convened for only minutes a year , prosecutors said . They also agreed to pay restitution , the amount of which has yet to be determined . Rizzo 's former chief administrative officer , Angela Spaccia , was convicted by a jury in December of 11 felony counts for writing her own employment contracts , taking loans without council approval , and creating her own retirement plan , prosecutors said . Spaccia was sentenced last week to 11 years and eight months in state prison , prosecutors said . The sentences for Rizzo and Spaccia together `` represent the longest prison terms for convicted public officials since the Public Integrity Division was established in 2001 '' in the Los Angeles County District Attorney 's Office , prosecutors said . Rizzo also `` lavished unauthorized loans on himself and city underlings , including Spaccia , '' prosecutors said .
The former city manager of Bell , California , will repay $ 8.8 million in restitution . Comment: Rizzo and those convicted officials `` looted at will , '' prosecutors said . The public corruption case drew attention for its big theft in such a small city .