MIAMI – Disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and a business partner were sentenced yesterday to five years and 10 months in federal prison, the minimum they faced for fraud related to their 2000 purchase of the SunCruz Casinos gambling fleet.

Abramoff and Adam Kidan both pleaded guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud, but they won’t have to report to prison immediately.

The judge postponed their reporting date for at least 90 days so the two can continue cooperating in a Washington corruption investigation and a Florida probe into the killing of former SunCruz owner Konstantinos Boulis. Both deny roles in the killing. Abramoff pleaded guilty in connection with the corruption probe but has yet to be sentenced.

In court yesterday, Abramoff said the fraud case was “incredibly painful” for himself, his family and his friends.

“In the past two years I have started the process of becoming a new man,” he said.

Under their plea agreement, both men had faced a sentence of between five years, 10 months, and seven years, three months in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Paul Huck also ordered them yesterday to pay restitution of more than $21 million.

Abramoff and Kidan admitted concocting a fake $23 million wire transfer to make it appear they had made a large cash contribution to the $147.5 million purchase of SunCruz Casinos. Based on that fake transfer, lenders provided the pair with $60 million in financing.

The same week Abramoff pleaded guilty to the SunCruz fraud, he entered guilty pleas to three federal charges as part of a wide-ranging corruption probe that could involve up to 20 members of Congress and aides, including former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

In addition to assisting in that investigation, Abramoff, 47, and Kidan, 41, are expected to give statements in the investigation into the February 6, 2001, slaying of Boulis, who was gunned down at the wheel of his car amid a power struggle over the gambling fleet. Three men face murder charges, including one who worked for Kidan as a consultant at Sun-Cruz and who allegedly has ties to New York’s Gambino crime family.

[A Senate bill on lobbying which passed yesterday is heavy on disclosing lawmaker contacts with lobbyists but has few new outright prohibitions or an independent office to police them.

The legislation would bar lawmakers from accepting gifts or meals from lobbyists or moving quickly to lobbying jobs after retiring. But they could still use corporate jets for the price of a first-class ticket and accept free lodging, travel and meals from non-lobbyists.

But the Senate on Tuesday rejected an amendment that would have created an Office of Public Integrity to carry out investigations of charges of ethics violations in the Senate.

The House is now working on its version of the bill, which also is expected to emphasize greater disclosure of lobbying activities. House leaders are also pushing for a provision to restrict political groups that are permitted to accept donations of unlimited size. Such groups have tended to favor Democrats, and Senate Democrats vowed to keep that out of the final bill.]