NEW YORK (AP) — A Chicago lawyer has been sentenced to seven years in prison by a federal judge who said his excessive loyalty to Refco Inc. led him to help the company carry out a $2.4 billion fraud.
Lawyer Joseph P. Collins was sentenced Thursday after he was convicted at trial of conspiracy and other charges in a huge fraud at the commodities brokerage giant.
Federal Judge Robert Patterson said federal sentencing guidelines called for a prison term of up to 85 years.
Refco filed for bankruptcy in 2005. It was once the nation’s largest independent commodities broker.
