WASHINGTON, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Disgraced U.S. lobbyist Jack Abramoff was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison on Wednesday in a fraud case concerning the purchase of a gambling fleet in Florida.

    Abramoff and his business partner, Adam Kidan, who was also given a five-year-ten-month jail term, were also ordered by a Miami, Florida-based federal judge to pay 21.7 million U.S. dollars in restitution for the deal in 2000.

    Both the two men have pleaded guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud charges. As they were cooperating with investigators in a murder case and a Washington corruption probe, they would not go to jail at least three months later. They were also ordered to be on probation for three years after their jail terms.

    Abramoff and Kidan received the minimum jail term under their plea agreement, which set a maximum term of seven years and three months in federal prison.

    Abramoff pleaded guilty at a Miami federal court in January this year to wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges, and acknowledged that he faked documents to get a 60 million-dollar loan to buy the SunCruz fleet of gambling ships in 2000.

    In Washington, Abramoff has already pleaded guilty to three federal charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, tax evasion and mail fraud, and agreed to cooperate in a corruption investigation that could implicate as many as 20 lawmakers, including former House Majority leader Tom DeLay of Texas and Republican Representative Bob Ney of Ohio. Enditem