| Ilena Rose 2006-10-17, 2:30 am |
| http://www.currentargus.com/ci_4501752
Ex-FDA chief to plead guilty to two charges
By Pete Yost
The Associated Press
Article Last Updated:10/16/2006 07:48:16 PM MDT
Washington - Former FDA chief Lester Crawford has agreed to plead
guilty to charges of failing to disclose a financial interest in
PepsiCo Inc. and other companies regulated by his agency, his lawyer
said Monday.
The Justice Department accused the former head of the Food and Drug
Administration in court papers of falsely reporting that he had sold
stock in companies when he continued holding shares in the firms
governed by FDA rules.
Court papers say Crawford chaired the Food and Drug Administration's
Obesity Working Group while he and his wife owned shares worth at
least $62,000 in soft-drink and snack-food manufacturer PepsiCo Inc.,
based in Purchase, N.Y. In addition, the documents say, he held stock
worth at least $78,000 in food-product manufacturer Sys co Corp.,
based in Houston.
While he and his wife owned the stock, the panel Crawford chaired met
with representatives from the packaged food industry and gave
congressional testimony encouraging manufacturers to relabel serving
sizes to give calorie counts greater prominence.
Crawford "is going to plead guilty to two misdemeanors tomorrow
afternoon, and he is going to admit his financial disclosures had
errors and omissions, mostly with his wife's continued ownership of
stocks," said Crawford's lawyer, Barbara Van Gelder. She said Crawford
was not disputing the government's claims in what she called a plea
agreement.
Accused of making a false writing and conflict of interest, Crawford
was scheduled to appear before a federal magistrate this afternoon.
Each charge carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison.
The papers say Crawford failed to disclose his income from exercising
stock options in Embrex Inc. of Research Triangle Park, N.C., an
agriculture biotechnology company that has been regulated by the FDA.
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