Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh was sentenced Thursday to three years in federal prison for her role in a children’s book deal scandal.
Pugh, 69, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow to pay $411,948 in restitution and to forfeit more than $600,000, including a property in Baltimore and nearly $18,000 from her campaign account.
Prosecutors said Pugh fraudulently sold her self-published “Healthy Holly” books to local nonprofit organizations in order to obtain more than $800,000 to fund her campaign and enrich herself.
She resigned in May amid the scandal.
In a video submitted Wednesday to the court by her attorneys, Pugh apologized and took responsibility for her actions.
“When I think about me, and my capacity and my capabilities and all the things I’ve been able to do I said, ‘How do you end up here? I mean, how do you mess this up?’” she said. “I messed up. I really messed up. I am so sorry. I really am sorry.”