Kosher Meatpacking Plant Manager Sentenced to 27 Years in Prison

The former manager of an Iowa-based kosher meatpacking plant that was raided by immigration authorities in 2008 has reportedly been sentenced to 27 years for financial fraud and ordered to pay $27 million in restitution. While the initial case against Sholom Rubashkin involved the hiring of hundreds of illegal immigrant workers, prosecutors apparently changed their focus to his alleged mishandling of loans that led to bank losses of $26 million. The presiding federal judge reportedly released a 52-page memorandum in advance of the sentencing hearing to explain her decision. The sentence, two years longer than requested by prosecutors, has generated controversy given the relatively lighter sentences meted out to corporate officials responsible for greater frauds in recent years. Six former U.S. attorneys general submitted a letter to the judge supporting a lighter prison term. Rubashkin’s lawyers have indicated that they will appeal the sentence. See The New York Times, June 21, 2010; The Kansas City Star, June 22, 2010.