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Conrad Black loses appeal


    CHICAGO (Reuters) - A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld the conviction of former press baron Conrad Black and three ex-colleagues found guilty last year of defrauding shareholders of one-time newspaper publishing giant Hollinger International Inc.

    The unanimous 16-page decision from a three-judge panel ofthe U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected allof the points lawyers for Black and the others made andaffirmed the trial court's ruling.

    Black, a Canadian-born member of the House of Lords, hasbeen in prison since March 3 when he began serving a 6-and-1/2year sentence for fraud and obstructing justice.

    The court similarly upheld the convictions of three formerHollinger colleagues -- Peter Atkinson, John Boultbee and MarkKipnis -- who were convicted along with Black.

    Black and the others were accused of swindling the company-- once the world's third largest publisher of English languagenewspapers -- out of $6.1 million (3.1 million pounds) bygiving themselves illegal bonuses.

    (Reporting by Michael Conlon, Editing by Peter Bohan andVicki Allen)