Home Boston Press Releases 2009 Former Biopure Executive Sentenced to Three Years’ Imprisonment for Lying to Federal Judge
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Former Biopure Executive Sentenced to Three Years’ Imprisonment for Lying to Federal Judge

U.S. Attorney’s Office October 06, 2009
  • District of Massachusetts (617) 748-3100

BOSTON, MA—The former Senior Vice-President of Regulatory Affairs for Biopure Corporation was sentenced late yesterday in federal court in connection with charges that he falsely told a federal judge that he had cancer in order to thwart a federal judicial proceeding.

Acting United States Attorney Michael K. Loucks and Warren T. Bamford, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, announced today that HOWARD P. RICHMAN, age 57, of Pearland, Texas was sentenced to 36 months' imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine.

At an earlier plea hearing, RICHMAN admitted that from October 26, 2006 through July 17, 2007, he represented to a federal judge that he was terminally ill with colon cancer and could not participate in an ongoing civil case that was brought against him by the Security and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). RICHMAN did not have cancer, and falsely claimed to be terminally ill in order to avoid discovery in the SEC’s case against him and to obtain a favorable settlement. To perpetuate his lie, RICHMAN deceived his attorneys by posing on the phone as a physician. He also provided the Court with phoney affidavits and fabricated letters which purported to be from his physician.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the United States Securities Exchange Commission. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James P. Dowden of Loucks’ Economic Crimes Unit.

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