Ex-Adelphia Execs Ask Court to Drop Conviction

Adelphia Communications Corp. founder John Rigas, sentenced last year to 15 years in prison for stealing from his company and lying to investors, urged a federal appeals court to reverse his conviction.

Defense attorney John Nields told a three-judge panel in New York that Rigas and his son Timothy, also convicted of fraud, adhered to company accounting rules in buying stock and debt.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Richard Owens urged the panel to reject the appeals, saying the Rigases failed to disclose that they used $822 million in company funds to buy Adelphia stock and debt.