A federal judge sentenced former Pennsylvania state Treasurer Rob McCord to two-and-a-half years in prison in connection with McCord's 2015 guilty plea to attempted extortion.

McCord's sentencing in federal court Tuesday in Harrisburg came more than a year after he testified for prosecutors against a businessman in a bribery case that ultimately got thrown out of court.

McCord, a Democrat, admitted that recorded telephone conversations captured him trying to use his position as treasurer to strong-arm state contractors into donating money to his failed 2014 gubernatorial campaign.

McCord, a venture capitalist before he was elected treasurer in 2008, was serving his second term as treasurer when he announced Jan. 29, 2015, that he would step down in two weeks and return to the private sector.

News reports that he was under federal investigation quickly emerged. A day later, McCord confirmed that he faced criminal charges and made his resignation immediate.The Pennsylvania treasurer is one of the state's three independently elected row officers, along with auditor general and attorney general.

At his guilty plea hearing a month later, McCord admitted trying to use his position as treasurer to threaten a Philadelphia-based law firm and a western Pennsylvania-based property management firm into donating a satisfactory amount of money to his campaign for governor.

Last year, a judge threw out a pay-to-play case against wealthy investment adviser Richard Ireland, who was accused of bribing McCord to get state business.

McCord testified for prosecutors, and admitted giving a $50 million investment contract to a $100,000 campaign donor who hid a connection to the contribution by giving through a joint acquaintance. He also promised to help a donor's son land an investment contract, and offering to slow down a state payment to the competitor of a donor.

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