Bernard Kerik became the first NYPD commissioner to admit committing
a crime Wednesday, pleading guilty to lying about a secret payoff he took from a mob-linked contractor. In a 90-minute hearing in White Plains Federal Court, Kerik pleaded guilty to eight of 15 charges against him. They included not telling the IRS the contractor footed the bill for a $255,000 renovation of his apartment, and lying to the White House. With his corruption trial set to begin next week, the former top cop worked out a last-minute deal in which prosecutors dropped the most serious charges - mail and wire fraud - and agreed to recommend prison time of 27 to 33 months.