WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) -- A former PepsiCo vice president could face decades in prison after admitting he stole about $1.8 million from the company.
Edward F. Backus, 53, of Ridgefield, Conn., will be sentenced Nov. 12 in White Plains, N.Y.
Federal prosecutors say the New York executive and two unidentified accomplices set up fake businesses in Pittsburgh and submitted invoices to PepsiCo. They say Backus also set up payments to a Kansas travel agency to get phony invoices.
He pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy and two counts of mail fraud. Each mail fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
The crimes occurred between July 1997 and July 2005.
