HILL SENTENCED TO 180 DAYS IN JAIL

Former mobster Henry Hill was sentenced Monday to 180 days in the
Lincoln County Jail.

Hill, 62, was found guilty Aug. 8 of attempted possession of
methamphetamine. Hill was expected to receive probation, but when he
reported to the District 9 probation office drunk, probation was no
longer an option.

Lincoln County District Court Judge Donald Rowlands said, "You have a
long record beginning in 1965. You checked out of treatment early and
unfortunately I can see no way of sentencing you to probation."

Rowlands sentenced him to 180 days in jail, but gave him credit for 34 days.

Hill was originally charged with possession of methamphetamine and
possession of cocaine.

In August 2004, local airport security guards searched bags belonging
to Hill. Inside the bag they found tubes containing what later tested
positive for meth and cocaine.

Hill was arrested on Jan. 4 on a warrant.

The charges were reduced to attempted possession of methamphetamine.

Lincoln County Attorney Jeff Meyer said the reason the charges were
reduced was because, "The police officer who had seized the drugs has
since moved to Texas, making prosecuting this case difficult."

A requirement of Hill's release on bond was that he was to abstain
from the use of alcohol and non-prescribed drugs. But when Hill
reported to the probation office Aug. 19 he recorded a blood alcohol
content of .343.

Hill was arrested on Aug. 24 on a bond revocation warrant. Prior to
being arrested, Hill was allegedly involved in a hit and run accident
Aug. 23 on Dewey Street.

North Platte Police Officer John Stadler arrested Hill for leaving
the scene of an accident, driving under a suspended license and the
warrant. When Stadler went to arrest Hill, he reportedly found him
passed out on a table in the back room of the Firefly Restaurant,
where he works.

Hill was extremely intoxicated, to the point that Lincoln County Jail
officials asked that a physician check him before being booked, Stadler said.

Hill was a gangster with a mob crime family in New York. He
ultimately testified against fellow gang members, served time in
prison, and entered the Federal Witness Protection Program. Hill was
the subject of Martin Scorsese's film, "GoodFellas."