A former CalAmp controller has agreed to plead guilty to insider ...

fines, according to a plea agreement filed in U.S. Dist. Court, L.A. Kusatzky is expected to enter the plea formally Jan. 10. In the deal, Kusatzky admitted he hid losses and liabilities at CalAmp -- formerly known as California Amplifier -- to meet analysts’ forecasts in 1999 and 2000. Kusatzky allegedly used knowledge of the hidden losses to profit from selling 15,000 stock options at the end of 1999, netting $350,000, the U.S. attorney’s office said. Kusatzky, who joined CalAmp in 1997, was responsible for preparing financial projections. In late 1999, he realized he had underestimated expenses associated with CalAmp’s purchase of a Del. satellite manufacturing firm, according to a court filing. Fearing he would be fired, Kusatzky falsified internal company reports to hide $3 million in costs, the filing states. He continued to hide expenses and liabilities more than a year, faking records to show that CalAmp’s Hong Kong subsidiary with more money in the bank than it actually had. CalAmp overstated profit by about $7.8 million over 2 years as a result of the fraud, court documents state. The fraud wasn’t detected until March 23, 2001, as CalAmp’s auditors started their annual work. The pressure became too much for Kusatzky, who arrived early at the office and wrote a note that he left along with his company ID on his boss’s desk, Stanley Greenberg, his attorney, told the L.A. Times. “I did an incredibly stupid thing,” the note read. “I hid expenses and made the [profit and loss statement] look better.” Kusatzky’s motive was to save his job and “to fit in,” according to the note, which was included in the Justice Dept.’s legal filing. “I have always been shy and find it hard to fit in anywhere,” the note said. “I wanted to fit in - -- be one of the guys.” Securities regulators cleared the rest of the company’s officers of wrongdoing. Kusatzky lives in Ill. and works at a postal packaging service, according to court documents. He still faces civil charges of fraud and insider trading filed by the SEC. A settlement in the SEC case is pending, Greenberg told the newspaper. Meanwhile, CalAmp Solutions Div. Pres. Tracy Trent has resigned and will be replaced by Steven L'Heureux. Under a severance agreement, Trent will be paid $255,000 over a 12-month period in biweekly installments and get Cobra benefits, according to documents filed with the SEC. L'Heureux will receive a $235,000 annual salary and was granted stock options for 100,000 shares. He also will eligible for a bonus of up to 60% of his base salary for the fiscal year ending Feb. 28, 2006.