Former Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s vice chairman Tom Coughlin is expected to plead guilty to fraud and failure to pay federal taxes in a court appearance on Tuesday, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported on Friday.
The newspaper, quoting unnamed sources, said a proposed plea agreement with prosecutors called for him to plead guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion.
Coughlin, 56, has been accused of misappropriating $500,000 in company funds to buy personal items, but has previously denied any wrongdoing.
He resigned from the Wal-Mart board of directors in March 2005 following an internal investigation into improper use of gift cards and other expenses.
The Democrat-Gazette said Coughlin would appear in court on Tuesday morning in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Neither a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Arkansas nor a lawyer for Coughlin could be reached for comment. Wal-Mart spokesman Kevin Thornton said the company had no comment.
