NatWest bankers indicted for Enron role
Thursday September 12, 8:55 pm ET
FT.com
By Peter Spiegel in Washington
Three former National Westminster bankers were indicted on Thursday on seven
counts of fraud for their role in a scam they hatched with two senior Enron executives
that allegedly looted millions of dollars from Enron investors and the bank.
The bankers - David Bermingham,
Giles Darby, and Gary Mulgrew -
had already been the subject of a
criminal complaint filed by the
Justice Department this spring and
were thought to be in discussions
with prosecutors to assist in their
case against Andrew Fastow, the
former Enron chief executive at the
centre of the company's collapse.
Prosecutors' decision to seek the
indictment is a clear indication any
such talks have broken down. The
three are still in the UK and were not
arrested when the original charges
were filed. They are still not in US
custody and the Justice Department
did not say if it would seek to extradite them.
The assistance of the NatWest bankers was made unnecessary with the guilty plea last
month of Michael Kopper, the Enron executive who helped to hatch the plan. Mr Kopper
is now co-operating with prosecutors.
According to the indictment, the three worked with Mr Kopper and Mr Fastow to
convince NatWest to sell its stake in an Enron-related partnership for only $1m, when
the true market value was much higher. The two Enron executives and the NatWest
bankers bought the stake though a partnership called Southampton Place, then quickly
sold it again for $20m.
The three bankers pocketed $7.5m, according to the indictment; the rest of the funds
are believed to have gone to Mr Kopper, Mr Fastow and three other Enron executives
who invested in Southampton. The Justice Department convinced a judge last month to
freeze the assets of Mr Fastow and the three other Enron executives - including former
treasurer Ben Glisan - involved in the partnership.
Prosecutors claimed the three NatWest bankers had been concerned about their
future, because NatWest was soon to be sold to rival Royal Bank of Scotland. In their
concern, they thought up the plan to make millions before they lost their jobs in the
meger.
biz.yahoo.com |
