Restaurateur Rod Anderson found guilty of Hereford House arson
The jury in the high-profile trial of restaurateur Rod Anderson — part-owner and very public face of Kansas City’s Hereford House restaurants — found the 59-year-old businessman guilty today on four counts of arson, mail fraud, conspiracy, and using fire to commit a federal crime. Anderson’s co-defendants in the federal case, Vincent Pisciotta and Mark Sorrentino, were also found guilty on charges of arson, conspiracy, and using fire to commit a federal crime. According to the courthouse story posted this afternoon by KSHB Channel 41, Anderson and his co-defendants face a maximum of 35 years in prison.
The verdict came as a shock to many in Kansas City’s restaurant community. Anderson, who took over the operation of the original Hereford House restaurant in 1987 (and went on to open satellite venues around the metro over the last two decades), was a popular and respected businessman.
