Former Alaska legislator gets six years

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- A former Alaska state legislator was sentenced to six years in federal prison Friday for taking bribes in a case that has entangled U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.

Pete Kott, who served as speaker of the state House of Representatives, was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine, The Anchorage Daily News reported.

Stevens, R-Alaska, is under investigation in the Veco Corp. scandal. During Kott's trial, former Veco Chief Executive Officer Bill Allen testified that Stevens was among the recipients of money from the oil equipment company.

A jury convicted Kott in September after hearing testimony from former Allen, who pleaded guilty to bribery. Jurors also heard taped conversations in a Juneau hotel room in which Allen, Kott and Rick Smith -- another Veco executive who has pleaded guilty -- discussed getting an oil tax bill through the legislature.

In one conversation, Kott talked about wanting to be a lobbyist. Allen said part of the deal was that Veco would hire Kott when he left the legislature.