9/8/09
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge handed down an eight-year sentence this morning for William "Boots" Del Biaggio III after an emotional hearing in which the disgraced Silicon Valley financier tearfully vowed to repay millions that he took through phony loans and investment schemes.
"A betrayal of trust is an awful thing," U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer told the 41-year-old Del Biaggio, who pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of securities fraud in which he used phony collateral to borrow $48 million from banks and business associates.
Del Biaggio, a co-founder of San Jose's Heritage Bank and a former investor in the San Jose Sharks, used some of the money to buy a stake in the Nashville

Predators pro hockey franchise. He also has admitted to mismanaging as much as $20 million from investors that authorities said he used to finance a lavish lifestyle that included expensive homes, travel, and casino gambling. He was not charged in connection with those funds.
"You have had tremendous advantages. You have had all the benefits of what we call the American dream," the judge told Del Biaggio, whose family has been prominent in San Jose society for three generations.
Defense attorneys had sought a lower sentence, stressing that Del Biaggio cooperated with authorities after the scheme began to unravel. The defense also emphasized his record of civic involvement and support for local charities.
"I did not intend


to hurt anyone," Del Biaggio said as he tearfully read from a statement before the judge imposed the sentence. "I thought somehow I could pull it all together."
But the judge, while acknowledging Del Biaggio's past record, said his actions were more than a single uncharacteristic mistake. "Every single day, you had to make these decisions to cheat, to lie," the judge said, although he also said he believes the schemes were driven more by pride than greed.
Del Biaggio was ordered to start his prison sentence in January. The judge also ordered that he get treatment for an unspecified "substance abuse issue"