A Machiavellian former Liberal MP and six-time mayor of Ryde, Ivan Petch, has been sentenced to an 18-month term of imprisonment for lying to a corruption body.

Magistrate Susan McIntyre said Petch, 80, was “blatantly caught out” lying to the Independent Commission Against Corruption during both private and public hearings in 2013.

Former Ryde mayor Ivan Petch, 80, sentenced for lying to ICAC. Credit:Ben Rushton

In 2012, Mayor Petch wanted to delay the proposed Ryde civic precinct development. In order to do so, he needed to get rid of the council’s general manager, John Neish. When the IT department informed Petch that adult material had been found on the general manager’s computer, this was “manna from heaven” said Magistrate McIntyre in Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday.

She went on to say that Mayor Petch had used this information to try to pressure Mr Neish into resigning. Mr Neish reported the blackmail attempt to ICAC, whose investigators were listening as Petch leaked the information to a freelance journalist Anthony Stavrinos to try to force the general manager to resign.