Ex-kin of political fundraiser pleads guilty in NY

NEW YORK – The former brother-in-law of a Democratic fundraiser imprisoned for cheating banks out of almost $300 million has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge in federal court in New York.

Shahin Kashanchi of Telluride, Colo., entered the bank larceny plea Monday in the case stemming from accounting work he did for Hassan Nemazee. Kashanchi is to pay $75,000 in restitution and could serve up to one year in federal prison.

Nemazee was sentenced last year to 12 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to bank fraud charges, admitting that he defrauded banks of $292 million by using fake collateral. Authorities say Nemazee donated some of the stolen money to politicians, including President Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton. Nemazee was the national finance chairman for Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign.