Trial delayed for former CEO of sweetener plant

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The criminal trial of former Mamtek CEO Bruce Cole has been delayed until December by a St. Charles County judge presiding over the case.

Cole had been scheduled for trial June 16 on five felony charges related to a failed project to build an artificial sweetener plant in Moberly, Mo.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reported Thursday that Circuit Judge Daniel Pelikan rescheduled the trial for Dec. 2. That came after attorneys said the trial likely would take longer than originally estimated.

Mamtek benefited from $39 million in local bonds and could have received more than $17 million of state incentives to build the sweetener facility. But the project, which was announced in 2010, failed financially before construction ever was completed.