The former chief executive of National Century Financial Enterprises, who was convicted in March of witness tampering and conspiracy, was sentenced on Friday to 10 years in federal prison.
Lance Poulsen, who was found guilty along with an associate, Karl Demmler, of conspiring to tamper with a witness in his upcoming securities fraud trial, was also fined $17,500.
Poulsen was indicted by an Ohio grand jury along with Demmler and six other National Century executives in July 2007 for their roles in what prosecutors described as a scheme to deceive investors about the financial health of the company.
Five other National Century executives have already been convicted but Poulsen, 65, and Demmler, 57, will be tried separately because of the witness tampering charges. Poulsen and Demmler's trial is scheduled to begin in October. National Century filed for bankruptcy in 2002 after an auditor refused to sign its financial statements and lenders stopped advancing funds.
Poulsen was president, chairman, chief executive officer and an owner of Dublin, Ohio-based NCFE, one of the largest healthcare finance companies in the United States until it filed for bankruptcy protection. Demmler's sentencing date on the witness tampering conviction has not been set. Both men have been in custody since their arrests.