Local

Richland man sent to prison for embezzlement from pension plan

PITTSBURGH — A Richland man will spend two years and one month in prison for embezzling more than $718,000 from his company's pension plan over several years, a federal judge ruled Friday.

Merrill J. Druggs, 67, pleaded guilty in October to making false statements and concealing information on pension plan documents. He was a tax manager for Oerlikon USA Holding Inc. of Export, a subsidiary of Swiss conglomerate Oerlikon Group, and a trustee for a pension plan covering about 1,400 people, prosecutors say.

U.S. District Judge Mark Hornak also ordered Druggs to pay $1.2 million in restitution, which includes the amount he stole plus about $472,000 the pension plan would have earned on the money.

This article was written by Channel 11’s news exchange partners at TribLIVE.