U.S. Jury Convicts Former Gen Re, AIG Executives

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. jury convicted four former executives of the General Re Corp unit of billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)(BRKb.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and a former executive of American International Group Inc (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on corporate fraud and conspiracy charges on Monday, the Justice Department said.

The five were convicted at federal court in Hartford, Connecticut in connection with a reinsurance deal that prosecutors said misled AIG investors because it enabled the company to improperly inflate its loss reserves, painting an artificially bright picture of its financial results.

Convicted in the case were Ronald Ferguson, former Gen Re chief executive; Elizabeth Monrad, Gen Re's former chief financial officer; Robert Graham, former Gen Re senior vice president and assistant general counsel, and Christopher Garand, a former Gen Re senior vice president and head of its finite reinsurance operations in the United States.

Christian Milton, AIG's former vice president of reinsurance, was also found guilty.

Ferguson, Monrad, Graham and Milton face maximum prison terms of 210 years each, while Garand faces a maximum term of 150 years, said Thomas Carson, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Connecticut, which prosecuted the case. They also face a fine of up to $46 million. Garand faces a fine of up to $29 million.

APPEAL PLANNED

Ronald Ferguson plans to appeal the verdict, his lawyer, Clifford Schoenberg, said by telephone from Hartford.

"This is a very sad day -- not only for Ron Ferguson, but for our criminal justice system," Schoenberg said. "(We) will not rest until we see him -- and justice -- vindicated."

Milton's lawyer, Frederick Hafetz, said his client was "denied a fair trial and his case should have been severed from the co-defendants."