Former HeadOf Wood RiverIs Sentenced
By CHAD BRAYOctober 16, 2007; Page C3
NEW YORK -- The former head of Idaho hedge-fund firm Wood River Capital Management LLC was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to securities fraud and other charges earlier this year.
U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff sentenced John H. Whittier, Wood River's majority shareholder and principal executive, to 36 months in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. He also ordered Mr. Whittier, of Hailey, Idaho, to forfeit $5.5 million.
The judge said he will impose restitution at a later date, probably in the amount of $88 million. Investors lost at least $88 million when two of Wood River's funds collapsed in 2005, the government said.
"I am sincerely sorry," Mr. Whittier said before he was sentenced.
Mr. Whittier, 41 years old, pleaded guilty in May to securities fraud, failure to disclose a beneficial interest of 5% or more in a publicly traded security and failure to disclose a beneficial interest of 10% or more in a publicly traded security.
Under federal guidelines, he had faced 121 months to 151 months in prison. The judge imposed a lower sentence, citing Mr. Whittier's good works and a health condition involving one of his children.
In August, Mr. Whittier settled similar charges filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2005. Without admitting or denying wrongdoing, he agreed to pay about $5.5 million in "ill-gotten gains" plus about $800,000 in prejudgment interest, an amount that may be offset by forfeiture payments of $5.5 million and restitution payments in the criminal case.
In settling the SEC case, he also consented to a permanent bar from associating with any investment adviser.
Write to Chad Bray at chad.bray@dowjones.com
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario