Former United President Milne Sentenced to 27 Months in Prison

John Milne, former president and chief financial officer of United Rentals, was sentenced this week to 27 months in prison for conspiring to falsify company records. Senior U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Breen Burns also ordered Milne, 50, to undergo three years of supervised release following his prison term and to perform 200 hours of community service.

Milne pleaded guilty last October to falsifying company records in 2003 to hide the true nature of payments made to settle obligations incurred as part of minor sales leaseback transactions entered into with Westport, Conn.-based Terex Corp. Authorities said Milne admitted that he and others conspired to falsify the records, including entering falsely inflated gains.

In a settlement of a separate civil action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Milne has agreed to disgorge $6.25 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The disgorgement is, essentially, returning ill-gotten gains made by selling $38 million worth of United Rentals’ stock while knowing its 2001 and 2002 earnings were materially overstated.