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Former NMB Director To Spend 12 Years In Prison

NORTH MIAMI BEACH - (CBS4) - A former North Miami Beach public services director charged with numerous counts of money laundering and grand theft pleaded guilty to those crimes.

On Friday, Martin King agreed to accept the state's offer. In exchange for his admission of guilt, King will spend the next 12 years in state prison followed by five years of probation.

Under the terms of the plea, Martin's wife Rita King will not be criminally charged. King will, however, be required to pay back $2.3 million in restitution to the city. King has also been ordered to sell his Hollywood home and use the net proceeds from that sale to pay back the city. His pension has also been forfeited. 

Read the full Martin King Plea Agreement.

King was first hired in December of 1996 and was promoted to director of public services in August of 2008. The arrest affidavit states that questions about King surfaced as the assistant director began to look into purchase orders and discovered that they did not match the work that had been done.

The affidavit states King asked a third-party that had legitimate business with the city to send bills to his shell company he named Contractor's Administrative Services, Inc. (CASI), which was registered under his wife's Rita's name. His wife has not been charged. She told investigators Martin had told her it was a business for his consulting work and that he didn't want the City of North Miami Beach to question him about it.

King moved about $2.3 million to a company owned by his wife over the course of 12 years. It was money that was supposed to be used to purchase hundreds of manholes, which remained uninstalled. 

Soon after his arrest, State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle told CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald that King spent the city's money on "leading a luxurious life."

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