WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Former Broward County Commissioner Joe Eggelletion, who earlier had pleaded guilty to money laundering, was sentenced Friday to 2½ years in prison and fined $10,00.

Upon release, he’ll be on probation for three years.

The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Donald Middlebrooks, who praised the former commissioner for taking responsibility for his illegal actions and owning up to his misdeeds.

Eggelletion was snared in an FBI sting operation in which undercover agents posed as money launderers. They enticed Eggelletion, then a county commissioner, to help them launder ill-gotten gains from a European Ponzi scheme through the Bahamas.

“I stand before the court admitting my guilt, not trying to run from it,” an emotional Eggelletion told the judge.

He said he had embarrassed himself, his family and his constituents and apologized to them.

The judge delayed the start of the sentence until May 3 to give Eggelletion time to recover from surgery for prostate cancer.

Meeting with reporters outside the Federal Courthouse, Eggelletion repeated his apology and expressed contrition. But he also blamed his relationship with the press for some of his problems.

“I’ve always taken the position that the press is never to be trusted, he said" "I learned that from (former Gov.) Lawton Chiles and others who just did not trust the press.”

According to Local 10 Political Reporter Michael Putney, Chiles had an excellent relationship with most members of the press during his years as governor and U.S. senator.

Eggelletion got bad press over the years for such things as charging $2,600 in personal expenses on his county credit card, which he was forced to repay. He also was fined by the Florida Ethics Commission for voting for a garbage hauling contract for a company for which he lobbied.