Judge Keeps Tycoon in Jail Until Sentencing

A federal judge in Trenton, N.J., denied bail for onetime financier Robert E. Brennan, ordering him to instead go to jail while he awaits sentencing on a bankruptcy fraud conviction. Prosecutors argued at a hearing that Brennan was a flight risk because of assets he holds overseas. The former penny-stock tycoon was convicted Monday on charges of bankruptcy fraud, but the jury found him innocent of hoarding casino chips before he filed for bankruptcy in 1995. The charges carry a total penalty of six to 12 years in federal prison. Sentencing is scheduled for July 16. Brennan can reapply for bail after his lawyer compiles financial information based on property that Brennan’s friends and relatives said they’re willing to put up. But when announcing his decision to keep Brennan in jail until sentencing, U.S. District Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. cited Brennan’s convictions on fraud and concealment and a court report that recommended Brennan stay in jail before sentencing.