He was the worst kind of crook: The kind who steals from kids. But yesterday Ruben Bohuchot, 60, was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison after the former Dallas ISD technology chief was found guilty of receiving nearly $1 million in cash and rewards in exchange for handing out rich computer contracts.

Though Bohuchot begged for leniency—he’s a Vietnam vet, he told the court—no degree of wartime valor could make up for his misconduct.

To wit:

In a story the Dallas Morning News broke in 2005, Bohuchot and Franki Wong, the co-owner and president of the Houston-based computer vendor Micro System enterprises, took a trip to Key West on a deep sea fishing boat on the firm’s dime. And yes, that firm was doing business with the school district.

Bohuchot, who the News describes as an "avid fisherman," controlled the use of two yachts that were purchased by Frankie Wong. There was Sir Vesa, which Wong bought for $350,000 and Sir Vesa II, which Wong bought for $850,000—after he was awarded a second lucrative contract with DISD.

There’s a lot more here—like how Bohuchot’s son-in-law got a sweet job working for Wong-but you get the point. Bohuchot’s worst crime, though, wasn’t what he stole, but the damage he did to the district's image: With the Dallas Independent School District currently mired in a massive budget shortfall, headlines about a high-ranking administrator taking to the seas on a vendor's yacht only solidify the impression, rightly or wrongly, that the ship is sinking.