Jan 1, 2007 12:00 PM

A federal jury has convicted Mark Kaiser, onetime chief marketing officer of US Foodservice Inc, of charges that he manipulated financial records to overstate the firm's earnings.

Kaiser was convicted in United States District Court in Manhattan NY of securities fraud, conspiracy, and false filing charges. Sentencing is set for Feb 8, 2007; Kaiser could receive a sentence of life in prison. He is free on bail pending appeal of the conviction.

According to the prosecution, Kaiser and others exaggerated the company's earnings by $800 million from 2000 to 2003 by reporting bogus allowances as revenue, enhancing their bonuses in the process. Kaiser was the last of more than 15 people to be charged in the accounting scandal.

US Foodservice's parent company, Dutch-based Royal Ahold, has placed the Columbia MD-based food distributor up for sale.