Indebted Nebraska Business Owner Convicted Of Arson

A federal jury convicted a former businessman on Tuesday of hiring an acquaintance to burn down his troubled manufacturing business in an attempt to gain $4 million in insurance money. After a day and a half of deliberation, the jury found Thomas Schropp, 53, guilty of six criminal charges including arson and mail and wire fraud. Schropp faces a mandatory minimum federal prison sentence of 15 years for the arson conviction and up to 20 years in prison for the mail and wire fraud convictions.