R. Allen Stanford fraud figures given 20 years in prison
BY JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press
Friday, February 15, 2013
2/15/13 at 5:18 AM
HOUSTON - The last two defendants convicted for helping disgraced financier R. Allen Stanford bilk investors out of more than $7 billion in one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history were each sentenced to 20-year prison terms by a federal judge on Thursday.
Lawyers for Gilbert Lopez Jr., the ex-chief accounting officer for one of Stanford's companies, and Mark Kuhrt, the ex-global controller for another company, had asked for lesser prison terms, saying their clients were not as culpable as two other former executives who received significantly smaller sentences.
Jack Zimmermann, Lopez's attorney, told U.S. District Judge David Hittner that his client was "down the chain" of Stanford's business empire and "had no decision-making authority in any of the things that ran this fraud."
Richard Kuniansky, Kuhrt's attorney, said his client had believed Stanford legitimately borrowed investor funds and was going to pay the money back.
Lopez and Kuhrt were both convicted at trial last year of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud.
Lopez, 70, covered his face with his hands after being sentenced, while Kuhrt, 40, stared down at the floor with his eyes closed. Family members who were in the courtroom cried after the sentences were announced. Lopez's attorney had asked for a three-year prison term, asking for leniency in part based on his client's age. Kuhrt's attorney had asked for five years.
Prosecutors said Stanford, a one-time billionaire, persuaded investors to buy certificates of deposit from his bank on the Caribbean island nation of Antigua, then used that money to bankroll a string of failed businesses and his lavish lifestyle.
Original Print Headline: 2 Stanford defendants sentenced
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