Montreal’s First Jewish Mayor To Serve 1 Year In Prison For Fraud

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By David Lazarus March 31, 2017

MONTREAL (JTA) — Montreal’s first Jewish mayor was handed a one-year prison term and two years probation following his January conviction on eight counts of corruption, breach of trust, and fraud.

“I can guarantee you and my family that I will be a better person when I come out,” Michael Applebaum said in provincial court at his sentencing hearing yesterday.

Applebaum, 54, served for seven months as interim mayor of Montreal before his arrest at his home in 2013 by corruption squad police for alleged crimes committed between 2006 and 2012 while he served as mayor of the city’s largest borough.

He had run on a platform of cleaning up city hall.

Applebaum’s conviction related to accepting kickbacks and favors from engineering firms and real estate developers in exchange for approval of projects.

Applebaum faced a maximum five-year sentence.

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