In addition, the agreement said, Haidl used a partnership he controlled to pay about $23,700 in lease costs for Jaramillo's 1997 Mercedes-Benz. The partnership later sold the car for $12,000.
Jaramillo broke the law by failing to report either the $7,000 or the $23,700 on his income tax returns, according to the agreement.
The agreement states that Jaramillo defrauded citizens of "their right to his honest services" by failing to report thousands of dollars in gifts he received from Ed Grech, owner of a company in Brea that manufactures custom limousines. As a public official, Jaramillo was required to report gifts on state disclosure forms that are filed each year and made available to the public.
The plea agreement refers to the gifts as being given by "E.G.," but Corrado confirmed that the initials refer to Grech. Among the gifts were $12,000 in cash in 2003; travel and hotel accommodations, including a $6,000 trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in 2001, that involved the use of Grech's private plane and yacht; a $456 stay in Las Vegas; and a tailored suit and 12 custom dress shirts worth $2,500.
Jaramillo was first accused of misusing public funds and conflict of interest in 2004. Those accusations involved allegations that he had worked as a paid consultant for CHG Safety Technologies Inc. of Newport Beach, which had designed a high-tech laser device to stop cars fleeing police.
Jaramillo helped stage demonstrations of the invention with sheriff's deputies. In 2005, the Orange County Grand Jury charged Jaramillo with conspiring with CHG owner Charles H. Gabbard to obstruct justice and take bribes to help promote the device.
The bribery counts alleged that Jaramillo was paid in 2000 and 2001 with three checks totaling $25,000. The fourth bribery count alleged that Gabbard gave Jaramillo's sister-in-law, Erica Hill, a job as a clerical assistant at Jaramillo's request. Hill was initially arrested and charged with Jaramillo, but prosecutors later dropped the charges.
Then, in January 2007, Jaramillo pleaded no contest to lying to the grand jury and misusing a county helicopter. He agreed to serve a year in jail as part of the plea.
Jaramillo has been serving his state sentence in a pay-to-stay facility in Montebello and is expected to be released next month.
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christine.hanley@latimes.com
hgreza@latimes.com
paul.pringle@latimes.com
Times staff writers Joe Mozingo and Scott Glover contributed to this report.
