Former Tribune executive freed on bond
BY KIM JANSSEN Federal Courts Reporter kjanssen@suntimes.com January 24, 2013 2:14PM
A former Tribune Co. executive who was locked up for repeatedly skipping court has been freed on bond by a judge after her parents put up their home as collateral.
Alleged fraudster Stephanie Pater — the Tribune’s onetime real estate boss — spent six nights behind bars at a downtown federal lockup before she was released Thursday by Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan.
Wearing leg shackles and orange Bureau of Prisons-issued clothing during a hearing, the 39-year-old was eventually freed after her parents offered their South Carolina home as collateral toward a $200,000 bond.
Pater, who allegedly bilked the Tribune Co. out of $260,000, was previously ordered locked up by an angry Der-Yeghiayan last week after she skipped court three times in less than a month.
Under the terms of her release, she must remain under the watch of her ex-husband in New Jersey. He agreed to act as her third-party custodian — essentially guaranteeing her appearance at future court dates.
