Former Cuyahoga County Sheriff Gerald McFaul was put on house arrest for a year yesterday for stealing from and cheating taxpayers, reports the Cleveland Plain Dealer. A judge spared McFaul a sentence of up to 10 years in prison for two felony theft in office offenses and a misdemeanor ethics violation, and ordered McFaul, 76, to be fitted with an ankle bracelet.
A Plain Dealer investigation last year led to a criminal probe of McFaul’s tenure as sheriff. Judge Fred Inderlied fined McFaul $21,000. The fine is in addition to $131,000 McFaul has agreed to pay in restitution. McFaul pleaded guilty last month to stealing cash from his campaign fund, forcing his employees to sell tickets to his political fundraisers, and breaking ethics laws by appointing his son as a special deputy.