Wall Street

The former vice chairman of Wal-Mart Stores, Thomas M. Coughlin, has agreed to plead guilty to federal charges that he defrauded the company of at least $350,000, people close to the negotiations said yesterday.

Online Stock Market Trading Mr. Coughlin, once the retailer's No. 2 executive, was ousted last year amid accusations that he used fake invoices and misappropriated gift cards to pay for items like contact lenses and a custom-made dog kennel.

Bank Fraud by Armando Duke Darlene Pacheco, 37, a former employee of Citizens Union Savings Bank, in Swansea, Massachusetts, pled guilty yesterday in federal court to bank fraud and money laundering. If you would like to receive late breaking business news covered by AXcess News then you need to subscribe. Membership is free. Print This Page March 18, 2005 (AXcess News) Darlene Pacheco, 37, a former employee of Citizens Union Savings Bank, in Swansea, Massachusetts, pled guilty yesterday in federal court to bank fraud and money laundering.According to authorities, Pacheco, a former assistant branch manager forged customer signatures on checks between 1993 and 2000, depositing the checks into her own account or cashed them.

Stock Investing Course He has agreed to plead guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion, people close to the inquiry said, and is scheduled to enter the pleas this month in federal court in Fort Smith, Ark.

Devlin initially pleaded not guilty to all the charges, raising the specter that Ben and Shawn might be forced to testify against him during multiple trials. Bailie said the family had been briefed by prosecutors that Devlin will plead guilty in all four jurisdictions where he is charged. Attorneys on both sides of the case would not comment, but St. Louis County's prosecutor made a surprise announcement of a series of hearings to end the cases in all four jurisdictions. The hearings will be Monday, Tuesday and possibly Wednesday.

Stock Market Game Defense lawyers and prosecutors expect Mr. Coughlin to be sentenced to slightly more than two years in prison, said people close to the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation into the matter is still open. The court is also expected to order Mr. Coughlin to make restitution to Wal-Mart for benefits he received and money he misappropriated.

By the late 1990s, he' his head, in particular, becoming noticeably bigger. His physical growth was accompanied by a remarkable power surge. He joins a parade of defendants tied to the BALCO investigation, including Anderson, who served three months in prison and three months of home detention after pleading guilty to steroid distribution and money laundering. BALCO founder Victor Conte also served three months in prison after he pleaded guilty to steroids distribution.

Stock Investing Game The guilty plea casts considerable doubt on Mr. Coughlin's assertion that he used company money to reimburse himself for a secret campaign, approved by senior executives, to pay union members for information about their organization drives, a potential violation of federal law.

count indictment named Dolores Guerrero, a Customer Service Representative on Experian's Dispute Team in the Dallas facility, conspirator. Guerrero pleaded guilty to fraud in May 2004 and is serving a prison term of more than three years, officials said, adding that she was paid $ $500 a week in bribes.

Journal Prime Rate Street Wall Mr. Coughlin is still expected to advance that argument before a judge during sentencing. A person close to the matter said that the plea agreement explicitly mentions a plan to use Wal-Mart's money to buy information that would disrupt efforts to unionize Wal-Mart Stores.

You be the judge. First, look at the company he keeps. Kevin Trudeau is not just a marketer; he's a convicted felon. card fraud. He also pleaded guilty to state charges for depositing $80, 000 in worthless checks at a bank in Massachusetts. And in 1998 he paid $500, 000 in a consent agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for making false advertising claims in infomercials.

Stock Market News Neither the United States attorney for the Western District of Arkansas nor Wal-Mart, after sifting through thousands of pages of documents, found evidence that such a proposal existed, people close to the investigation said.

Stock Investing Basics A representative for Wal-Mart declined to comment last night.

Stock Investing Software The plea agreement, which has been in the works since October, represents a staggering outcome for Mr. Coughlin, who was once considered a strong candidate to become chief executive of Wal-Mart.

Stock Market Trading Mr. Coughlin came to Wal-Mart in 1978 as a chief of security, rose quickly and two decades later, oversaw Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and Walmart.com. Mr. Coughlin, a hunting buddy of Wal-Mart's founder, Sam Walton, was a celebrated figure within the company, viewed as the final link to the retail chain's humble roots.

Stock Investing For Dummy But according to legal documents that Wal-Mart made public last year, Mr. Coughlin had for years relied on an intricate web of underlings to routinely approve purchases of gifts for himself ($900 worth of duck hunting gear) and even his son (a $1,700 computer).

Stock Market Crash Mr. Coughlin retired from Wal-Mart in January 2005 but remained on the board until March, when he was forced out.

Stock Investing Tip A former aide to Mr. Coughlin, Robert Hey Jr., pleaded guilty in November to charges of wire fraud.

Stock Market Chart In one instance, according to a Wal-Mart report, Mr. Coughlin directed a subordinate to buy $2,000 worth of gift cards, which he said would be given to low-level employees to improve morale. Instead, Mr. Coughlin used the cards to buy wine and hunting gear, the report said.

Online Stock Investing In another case, Mr. Coughlin bought an all-terrain vehicle from a potential Wal-Mart supplier, using $8,500 in company money and permitting the supplier to cover the remaining $2,200, according to records. The arrangement violated Wal-Mart's ban on gifts from vendors that it has done or may do business with.

Stock Market Crash Of In the end, Mr. Coughlin's use of company money was discovered by a cashier, according to Wal-Mart. The employee tipped off executives when Mr. Coughlin tried to use a gift card, intended for rank-and-file workers, to buy a pair of contact lenses.

Stock Investing For Beginner In July, Wal-Mart sued Mr. Coughlin, seeking to prevent him from collecting about $12 million in retirement benefits and to recover money the company said he had fraudulently siphoned from the company

Finance Journal Personal In November, a state judge in Arkansas tossed out part of the lawsuit, citing an agreement that barred the former executive and the company from suing each other. Wal-Mart had asserted that Mr. Coughlin's conduct invalidated his retirement pact.

Stock Market Report But a local judge ruled that Arkansas law did not require an executive to disclose misconduct before signing a release from liability. Wal-Mart, the court said, could pursue only claims of misconduct said to have been committed after Mr. Coughlin signed the agreement.

Finance Investing Stock Market One question that remains is whether Mr. Coughlin's plea would lead the town of Bentonville, Ark., to reconsider the name of its new public library. The building, constructed with the help of $4 million from the Wal-Mart/Sam's Club Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation, was recently christened the Coughlin Library.

[ Comment, Edit or Article Submission ]