Probation for Quad Insider Trading Schemer

NEW YORK—The ex-forklift operator at Quad/Graphics escaped a prison sentence when he was sentenced to probation after cooperating with the government in its investigation into a $6.7 million insider trading case that involved stolen stock tips from a magazine printed by the Sussex, WI-based printer.

A federal judge here gave Juan Renteria two years of probation, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Renteria’s cooperation helped the government prosecute “more culpable defendants,” according to Judge Richard Howell, the paper reported.

Renteria, who was ordered to forfeit $5,000 in illegal profits, provided pre-published copies of BusinessWeek magazine from Quad’s Hartford, WI, plant to individuals who traded stock based on information provided in its “Inside Wall Street” tips column. The so-called mastermind of the scheme, Eugene Plotkin, was sentenced earlier this year to nearly five years in prison.