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Richie Farmer, former shooting guard for Kentucky, sentenced to 27 months in federal prison

Richie Farmer

Richie Farmer, former Commissioner of Agriculture for the state of Kentucky, was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $120,500 in restitution for abusing power as the state’s agriculture commissioner.

In September of 2013, Farmer pleaded guilty to two counts of misappropriating government resources. Essentially, he hired friends of his and had them do petty work.

According to the Associated Press:

Prosecutors have outlined a wide range of abuses by Farmer during his eight years in office, including using state employees for personal business and keeping items such as laptops, small refrigerators and filing cabinets after leaving office in 2012.

“If you make bad decisions and poor judgments, you own up to them,” Farmer said.

Farmer was -- and probably still is -- a basketball legend in the Bluegrass State. He was named Mr. Basketball for the state of Kentucky in 1988, and a senior on the 1991-92 University Kentucky team, better known as “The Unforgettables.”

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