NEW YORK (AP) _ A judge has sentenced the former chief executive

of Refco Inc. to 16 years in prison for a financial cover-up that

brought down one of the world's largest commodities brokerages.

Phillip Bennett, a British citizen living in Gladstone, N.J.,

had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities

fraud and other charges.

Refco went public in August 2005. It filed for bankruptcy just

weeks later _ after disclosing that a $430 million debt owed to

Refco by a firm controlled by Bennett had been concealed. The

disclosure caused Refco's stock value to plummet.