The actor who helped Ponch put bad guys behind bars on "ChiPs" is lucky he won't spend time in a cell himself after he was given a slap on the wrist in a Fort Lauderdale courtroom Friday for pleading guilty to securities fraud.
Larry Wilcox will spend three years on probation and will serve 500 hours of community service, a Federal judge ruled.
Wilcox allegedly organized a kickbacks scheme that would see him profit from an employee pension fund. The California resident traveled to South Florida to meet with undercover FBI agents participating in a sting.
Wilcox pleaded guilty to federal charges in November. He was facing as much as five years in prison.
The 63-year-old Wilcox starred as Jon Baker on the prime-time cop drama based on the California Highway Patrol. While Erik Estrada's Ponch character gained much of the glory during the show's five-year run of success, Baker left the TV series before its final season in 1982.
ChiPs Actor Gets Slap on the Wrist
Larry Wilcox avoids jail time in Fort Lauderdale securities fraud case
Copyright AP - Associated Press
