New Jersey Pol Gets 41 Months In Prison For Taking On-Camera Bribe
Daniel Van Pelt was caught on tape taking $10,000 envelope from developer.
Nov. 19, 2010 — -- Former New Jersey state legislator Daniel Van Pelt has been sentenced to 41 months in federal prison for accepting $10,000 from a developer in a bribery sting that was caught on tape.
Van Pelt, an assemblyman from Ocean County, was convicted of taking the money in return for promising a local developer that he would help him acquire permits for a large coastal development. The developer was actually an FBI informant, and the sting was captured on undercover video.
An ABC News report on the bribery case, featuring the undercover video and an exclusive interview with Van Pelt, was part of a week-long investigative series called "State House Scoundrels" produced by student reporters working with the Ross Investigative Unit. Five graduate school journalists selected as Carnegie Fellows examined the ethics and behavior of state legislators, and found conduct that could be best described as unbecoming.
CLICK HERE to watch the undercover video
CLICK HERE to see a partying lawmaker caught on tape groping a student journalist
In February 2009, Van Pelt told the informant over dinner at a pricey Atlantic City steakhouse how he could help him acquire the much-coveted environmental permits. When the meal ended, the informant pulled out a white envelope stuffed with $10,000 in cash.
"I'll hold on to it," Van Pelt said, tucking the envelope into his pocket. "I don't know what I'm going to do with it."
Earlier this year, a jury viewed the tape and convicted Van Pelt of bribery and extortion. He faced up to 30 years in prison, but Judge Joel Pisano gave him 41 months and two years of supervised release. Van Pelt's star turn was among the most dramatic moments in a New Jersey public corruption investigation, Operation Bid Rig, that nabbed 44 individuals in one of the most sweeping stings in the nation's history.
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