Noramie Jasmin, Extortion and Fraud, New York 2013

Federal authorities have scored a major victory in their fight against public corruption in New York, with the sentencing of former Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin to four years in prison for extortion and fraud charges.

Jasmin, 51, of Spring Valley, New York, was convicted in April after a one-week bench trial before U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon, who imposed today’s sentence on November 2, 2013. The sentence also includes three years of supervised release and an order to pay $15,000 in restitution of her salary and to forfeit $5,000.

The charges against Jasmin stemmed from her misuse of her position as mayor in an effort to enrich herself. According to the evidence presented at trial, Jasmin negotiated a 50% stake in a development company and $5,000 cash for herself in exchange for her use of her office to obtain land and various government approvals to construct a community center in Spring Valley.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office, and Chief Paul Modica and the Spring Valley Police Department in a statement. “By abusing her position as mayor for her own personal gain, Noramie Jasmin betrayed the trust the people of Spring Valley put in her,” Bharara said. “As the conviction and prison sentence today make clear, we do not accept public corruption in New York as the status quo.”

Jasmin was sentenced on November 2, 2013 to four years in prison for her role in the scheme, which centered on the development of a community center in the Village of Spring Valley. The construction costs for the center were expected to be at least $12 million.

The evidence presented at trial showed that Jasmin directed an undercover FBI agent to find people to pose as bidders for the project so that the transaction would appear legitimate to the other members of the Spring Valley Board of Trustees who were to, and did, vote on the sale. Jasmin also asked for an advance on her profits from the scheme and accepted a $5,000 cash payment from a cooperating witness.

Defendant: Noramie Jasmin
Criminal Charges: Extortion and Fraud
City and State: Spring Valley, New York
Exact Date: April 2013
Sentence: Four years in prison, three years of supervised release, and $15,000 in restitution and forfeiture of $5,000.

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