Well, success on Wall Street is a slippery thing. Consider David Becker, the ex-commodities trading whiz at Citigroup. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison after admitting that he rigged the system to book $20 million in phony gains. He owned up to his faults at least, which earned him the light sentence. It could have been a lot worse. His buddy, Charles Craig Gile, who headed the desk, will be sentenced April 20--he also pleaded guilty. The judge also ordered Becker to pay a $25,000 fine and $200,000 in restitution to his former employer. These sorts of situations crop up every now and then. There were some really notorious cases in which rogue traders nearly felled entire banks. The interesting part here is that Becker offered the prosecutors a deal: He wanted to be an inside window into shenanigans he perceived on the Street. No go, apparently.

For more:
- here's a New York Post article