Bernie Ebbers wept in court as he was told he faced 25 years in chokey for orchestrating the world's biggest securities fraud at WorldCom.
The man behind the $11bn (£5.8bn) con that helped make WorldCom "become synonymous with fraud" was visibly shaken when the sentence was handed down yesterday, according to those in court.
For Ebbers, 63, the jail term means he could spend the rest of his life behind bars, reports the BBC.
He is due to start his prison sentence on October 12 at a federal jail in Yazoo City, Mississippi, which is near his home.
Handing down the sentence Judge Barbara Jones told the court: "A sentence of anything less would not reflect the seriousness of the crime."
In March, Bernard J Ebbers, the former chief exec of WorldCom (now renamed MCI), was found guilty of orchestrating the $11bn (£5.8bn) accounting fraud that led to the collapse of the US telecoms giant, the loss of 20,000 jobs and wiped out more than $100bn in stock value.
Full Story @ The Register
Posted by Muddy at July 14, 2005 09:00 AMSomehow I knew you'd find the time to post this story. It's nice to see justice prevail and people getting what they deserve.
Posted by: mrs. muddy at July 14, 2005 09:55 AMthis guy is an idiot. he steals hundreds of millions of dollars, and stays in this country? shit i would have been living in brazil or some other country that doesnt have an extradition treaty. its not like he doesnt have the money. he was already a crook, he should have ran away.
Posted by: mooseboy84 at July 14, 2005 11:47 AMmooseboy.....this is actually one of the very few times that I would have to agree with you.:-)
Posted by: mrs. muddy at July 14, 2005 01:10 PMas my best friend the cop always says:
The only people in jail of the stupid and the unlucky.
"The only people in jail of the stupid and the unlucky."
Well, that describes Ebbers perfectly. Hence the reason for his sentence.
Posted by: mrs. muddy at July 14, 2005 10:43 PM