Former WorldCom accounting executive Betty Vinson was sentenced to serve 10 months - five in prison and five under house arrest - for her role in the company's $11 billion accounting fraud.
Vinson, a director of management reporting who helped prepare financial documents, pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy in October 2002. She later testified in the trial of former chief executive Bernard Ebbers, was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
She had faced up to 14 years in prison, but the lighter sentence from a Manhattan federal judge came as no surprise because of her cooperation ujgdfwith prosecutors. Accountant Troy Normand, who also testified against Ebbers, was sentenced to three years probation and will not have to pay a fine.
