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4-year sentence for break-in at home of 'Hills' star

Audrina Patridge and her partner Tony Dovolani perform on the celebrity dance competition series, 'Dancing with the Stars,' in Los Angeles.
Audrina Patridge and her partner Tony Dovolani perform on the celebrity dance competition series, 'Dancing with the Stars,' in Los Angeles.

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Date: Tuesday Oct. 25, 2011 8:31 PM ET

LOS ANGELES — A woman who pleaded no contest to breaking into reality television starlet Audrina Patridge's home was sentenced to four years in state prison Tuesday.

Rachel Lee is the second member of the so-called "Bling Ring" to be sentenced for their roles in a rash of break-ins at celebrities' homes that netted more than $3 million in high-end goods.

The group targeted the homes of stars such as Orlando Bloom, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and others before members of the ring were arrested in late 2009.

Lee, 21, was arrested in January 2010 and later pleaded no contest to the February 2009 burglary at the Hollywood Hills home of Patridge, who starred in MTV's "The Hills."

More than $25,000 in designer luggage, jewelry, clothing and shoes were taken from Patridge's home, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. A hearing will be held at a later date to determine how much Lee has to re-pay.

Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler dismissed a conspiracy to commit burglary charge and two counts of receiving stolen property that had been filed against Lee. The judge had previously dismissed a charge against Lee related to the Lohan burglary.

Four other alleged members of the crew, including accused ringleader Nicholas Prugo, are awaiting trial.

Alexis Neiers, an aspiring model and star of the E! Entertainment Television show "Pretty Wild," pleaded no contest in May 2010 to burglarizing Orlando Bloom's home and was sentenced to six months in jail and three years of probation.

Patridge testified before a grand jury about returning to her home on Oscar night 2009 and finding it had been looted.

"So I locked myself in the closet," Patridge told the grand jury, according to transcripts. "And I was still on the phone with my sister and I was afraid to hang up, because I didn't know if someone was still in my house, or, you know. I just wanted to be safe."

The starlet never appeared in court on Lee's case.

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