Business

Aeropostale executive Finazzo snags 8 years in jail

Aeropostale’s former top merchandising executive was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison for steering $350 million in business to a major supplier for $25 million in kickbacks.

Christopher Finazzo, who was convicted by a Brooklyn federal court jury last year of 14 counts of mail fraud and one count each of conspiracy and wire fraud, will forfeit all of the kickbacks and pay back more than $13 million of his salary to the clothing retailer.

“Mr. Finazzo held the keys to the kingdom. He was the key to the success of this scheme,” said Judge Roslynn Mauskopf before she handed down her sentence. “The motive here is pure greed.”

Finazzo, 58, directed the orders to his co-defendant Douglas Dey’s company, South Bay Apparel, in exchange for the kickbacks.

Dey was sentenced earlier this month to 3¹/₂ years in prison for his role in the scheme.

“For over a decade, Christopher Finazzo abused his position of power at Aeropostale and betrayed the trust placed in him by the company, its investors, and its employees by lining his own pockets at his employer’s expense,” US Attorney Loretta Lynch said in a statement.