Salesman pleads guilty to stealing from employer

LAFAYETTE — A longtime tire salesman from Rayne has pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud in a multiyear scheme that diverted proceeds from his employer’s tire sales to a personal bank account, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.

Deynoodt Joseph Besse, 53, pleaded guilty to stealing $143,872 from his employer, Interco, from January 2003 until August 2010, U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley said in a news release.

Besse faces up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both, she said.

Judge Richard T. Haik has not set a sentencing date in the case investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by assistant U.S. attorneys Daniel J. McCoy and Myers P. Namie, Finley said.