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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
ST. LOUIS—Roger B. Wilson, the former CEO of Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance Co., was sentenced to two years probation Monday for misusing funds from the state workers compensation insurer.
According to a statement issued Monday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in St. Louis, Mr. Wilson, who served as former CEO of Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance Co., worked with MEM's then-board Chairman Douglas Morgan and St. Louis attorney Edward Griesedieck III to improperly distribute funds from the insurer to the Missouri Democratic Party.
Mr. Morgan—who has since died—directed Mr. Griesedieck to contribute $5,000 to the state Democratic party in 2009, then directed Mr. Wilson to reimburse Mr. Griesedieck’s contribution with MEM funds, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Other MEM board members were unaware of the illegal payment, the office said.
That same year, the trio attempted to make another similar contribution for $3,000 to the state Democratic party, the U.S. attorney’s office said. However, MEM’s in-house counsel discovered the pending payment during a routine review, and Mr. Wilson repaid Mr. Griesedieck with his own money instead.
Mr. Wilson, who served as governor of Missouri from October 2000 to January 2001, was fired from MEM last year after allegations emerged about fund misappropriation.
Mr. Wilson and Mr. Griesedieck pleaded guilty in April to one misdemeanor count of misappropriation of funds from an insurer. In addition to probation, Mr. Wilson was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and perform 100 hours of community service, as well as pay $5,000 in restitution to MEM.
Mr. Wilson and Mr. Griesedieck, who received a similar sentence on Monday, also paid fines of $2,000 to the Missouri Ethics Commission, a group that enforces campaign finance and lobbying laws.