Mark Whitacre
| Mark Whitacre | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Born |
May 1, 1957 Morrow, Ohio |
| Occupation |
COO and President of Operations of Cypress Systems, Inc. |
| Criminal charge | Wire fraud, tax fraud, money laundering, price-fixing |
| Criminal penalty | 10 yr. in federal prison camp (but served ca. 8½ yrs. for good behavior) |
| Criminal status | Released December 21, 2006 |
| Spouse(s) | Ginger (Gilbert) Whitacre (married 1979) |
| Children | Three adult children |
Mark Edward Whitacre (born May 1, 1957) came to public attention in 1995 when, as president of the BioProducts Division at Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) based in Decatur, Illinois, he was the highest-level corporate executive in U.S. history to become a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) whistleblower. For three years (1992–95), Whitacre acted as an informant for the FBI, which was investigating ADM for price fixing.
In apparent retaliation for his role as an informant, ADM investigated Whitacre's activities and, upon discovering suspicious activity, requested the FBI investigate Whitacre for embezzlement. As a result of US$9.5 million in various frauds, Whitacre lost his whistleblower's immunity, and consequently spent eight-and-a-half years in federal prison. He was released in December 2006. Whitacre is currently the chief operating officer and President of Operations at Cypress Systems, a California biotechnology firm.
Whitacre was born on May 1, 1957 and grew up in Morrow, Ohio. He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from Ohio State University, and earned a Ph.D. in Nutritional Biochemistry from Cornell University (1983).
Whitacre was a Ph.D. scientist at Ralston Purina after he graduated from Cornell University in early 1983. He then was a top executive, Vice President, at Degussa from 1984 to 1989 prior to joining ADM. In late 1989, Whitacre became the President of the BioProducts Division at ADM. In 1992, he was promoted to Corporate Vice President of ADM, in addition to being President of the BioProducts Division. On August 9, 1995, Whitacre was terminated for conducting a $9.5 million fraud after ADM learned that he was an FBI informant for three years, where Whitacre wore a wire for the FBI assisting in one of the largest price fixing cases in U.S. history against ADM.
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