Former Bachmann aide sentenced to community service for office theft

WASHINGTON - The bizarre case of Javier Sanchez, a former aide to 6th District U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, ended Monday with Sanchez agreeing to serve 32 hours of community service after he was caught by Capitol police officers stealing cash from Bachmann's office.

Sanchez, 37, agreed do community service before Dec. 19 as part of a deferred prosecution agreement in which the government retains the right to prosecute Sanchez if the agreement's terms are not fulfilled, according to a filing posted on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia's website. Sanchez had initially filed a plea of not guilty.

Last month, Sanchez was charged with second degree theft, a misdemeanor, after other Bachmann staffers identified him as the person who was videotaped stealing two envelopes full of cash from Bachmann's office in the Rayburn House Office Building as part of a sting organized by the Capitol police. The office had previously reported a series of thefts. Sanchez was dismissed from the office immediately after the arrest.

Sanchez had worked for Bachmann as a senior legislative assistant, a relatively junior position on Capitol Hill, since January and had previously worked for another Republican member of Congress.  The liberal web site Talking Points Memo reported last month that Sanchez had significantly exaggerated his title in past positions and had been dismissed by the Armed Forces Foundation in 2007 for violating the group's policies about making unauthorized public appearances.

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