A JUDGE in Milan sentenced ten former Parmalat executives and a lawyer to jail yesterday for their role in the €14 billion (£9.3 billion) collapse of the Italian food group.

The sentences, handed down as part of a plea bargain struck with the group, represent the first guilty rulings since the failure of Parmalat in 2003.

Judge Cesare Tacconi sentenced the 11 men, including Fausto Tonna, one of the closest associates of Calisto Tanzi, Parmalat’s founder, to up to 2½ years in jail for crimes including market-rigging and obstructing regulators.

However, the men are not expected to serve any time in prison, and will not have to stand criminal trial in Milan under the terms of the plea bargain.

They can, however, still be indicted in Parma, near Parmalat’s headquarters, where a wider investigation into dozens of suspects is under way. Other cases are still open in Milan.

Prosecutors have been investigating suspected financial crimes since Parmalat, once one of Italy’s biggest industrial groups, crumbled under the weight of billions of euros of debt.

The executives convicted yesterday included the former chief financial officer, Alberto Ferraris, internal auditors and Signor Tanzi’s brother and son.

Because Italian law waives prison stretches for first-time offenders sentenced to no more than two years, eight of the eleven convicted were given suspended sentences.

Tonna, a former chief financial officer, who was sentenced to 2½ years, spent several months in detention last year. He is expected to be allowed to work with social services instead of returning to jail.

Gian Paolo Zini, Parmalat’s outside counsel, was sentenced to two years, and Luciano Del Soldato, the former chief financial officer, was sentenced to a year and ten months.

Parmalat disclosed a €4 billion hole in its accounts 18 months ago. It was placed under administration, but plans to relist after the summer.

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