By C.M. Matthews

A former Haitian government official charged in connection with an alleged bribery scheme was sentenced Friday to one year and one day in prison.

Patrick Joseph, a former director at Haiti’s state-owned telecommunications company, pleaded guilty in February to conspiring to launder money in connection with the scheme. Joseph faced up to 20 years in prison, but prosecutors said they would recommend a sentence reduction in exchange for his cooperation with the government’s investigation.

On Friday, Miami U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez handed down the prison term and also ordered Joseph to forfeit nearly $1 million.

A Justice Department spokeswoman and a lawyer for Joseph didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Joseph, 49, was charged as the result of a broader investigation of Florida telecoms that allegedly paid bribes to Haitian officials in return for preferred rates and other business advantages, a probe that has netted 13 indictments so far.

Joel Esquenazi and Carlos Rodriguez, former executives at Terra Telecommunications Corp. in Florida, were convicted in October of authorizing bribes to Haiti Teleco officials and were sentenced to 15 and seven years in jail, respectively. Esquenazi’s sentence is the longest-ever sentence in U.S. history for violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Joseph was charged along with six others in January in a second superseding indictment with violating the FCPA, money laundering and conspiracy. Joseph initially pleaded not guilty, but ultimately agreed to plead to only the money laundering conspiracy count.