Former Executive of Rite Aid Pleads Guilty

A former Rite Aid Corp. executive pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice in an accounting fraud case that has led to convictions of four other executives at the third-largest U.S. drugstore chain.

Philip Markovitz, 62, who was senior vice president for store development, admitted that he lied to federal investigators and a U.S. grand jury about a backdated letter promising severance pay when he left the company, said Thomas Marino, U.S. attorney in Harrisburg, Pa. Markovitz is cooperating in an investigation in which others will be charged, Marino said.