Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart settles dispute with ex-executive who admitted theft

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it will settle a compensation dispute for $6.75 million with a former vice chairman who once admitted to stealing money from the company and spending it on dog care and a truck upgrade.

The company initially agreed to a $17 million retirement package for Vice Chairman Thomas M. Coughlin, a friend of the Wal-Mart's late founder, Sam Walton, and then asked a court three years ago to cancel the accord, according to a statement the company filed yesterday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. A trial was scheduled to begin yesterday in Arkansas state court, said Daphne Moore, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman.

“We are satisfied that the settlement is fair to both parties and are ready to put this one behind us,” she said in a phone interview.

Coughlin in February was sentenced to 27 months home detention after pleading guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of failing to report income from the fraud on his 2000 tax return. He previously paid $411,218 in restitution and a $50,000 fine.

Coughlin's lawyer, Warner “W.H.” Taylor in Fayetteville, Arkansas, didn't respond to an after-hours e-mail message seeking comment. No one answered a phone call to his office.

Wal-Mart, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, is the world's largest retailer.

(Published by Bloomberg - august 22, 2008)