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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A former state official pleaded guilty to extortion charges Thursday and admitted taking a $10,000 bribe protect a cockfighting organization from legal trouble.
Suspended South Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Charles Sharpe was accused of accepting the payoff from an organization involved in breeding and raising birds for cockfighting, which is illegal in the state.
He used the money to pay off a debt from his 2002 campaign for commissioner, prosecutor Mark Moore said. Sharpe also pleaded guilty to lying to a federal officer.
"I am truly sorry for my error in judgment and ask for forgiveness," Sharpe told the court.
Federal prosecutors agreed to drop other charges, including money laundering, in exchange for the plea. Prosecutors recommended a prison sentence of up to 2 1/2 years.
Sharpe, a 66-year-old Republican, was suspended following his indictment last summer, and an interim agency head was appointed in September. Sharpe remained free pending his sentencing hearing. | 
