LOS ANGELES — A businessman was sentenced Monday to 4 1/2 years in federal prison for a pair of schemes, including one that authorities said involved wiretapping by Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano.
Daniel Nicherie, 46, pleaded guilty in December to one count of aiding and abetting, admitting in federal court that he authorized Pellicano to intercept phone conversations pertaining to a business dispute.
Prosecutors said Nicherie paid Pellicano $160,000 and listened to the intercepted conversations at the detective's office.
Nicherie also pleaded guilty to wire fraud, pension fraud and money laundering charges in a separate case in which he was accused of bilking $275,000 from an investor.
For both cases, U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer sentenced Nicherie to 54 months in prison.
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Fourteen people have been charged in the wiretapping case, including Nicherie's brother, Abner, who prosecutors said was also in a business dispute with the man who was wiretapped.
Daniel Nicherie's attorney, Kiana Sloan-Hillier, has said her client was not implicating his brother by entering the plea. Abner Nicherie has pleaded not guilty.
Pellicano has pleaded not guilty to racketeering and wiretapping charges and is scheduled for trial in August.
Seven people pleaded guilty in the case.
Prosecutors contend Pellicano illegally wiretapped the phones of such people as Sylvester Stallone and Keith Carradine and bribed police officers to run the names of more than 60 people, including comedians Garry Shandling and Kevin Nealon, through government databases.
Information gathered was used to get dirt for threats, blackmail and in some cases to secure a tactical advantage in litigation, according to court documents.
