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Non-Tech : The Enron Scandal - Unmoderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (2510)	10/2/2002 10:54:12 PM
From: Raymond Duray	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3602

Scott and Thread, Does anyone know how to access the indictment of Andrew Fastow on the Net? Kurt Eichenwald of the NY Times was just on the PBS-News Hour saying it is an amazingly detailed documentation of the fact case. Then he says there is not one mention of Jeff Skilling. I smell whitewash all over this POS. I'd love to read it. Anyone seen it? Or is this just another Disney production..... <ng> -Ray

To: stockman_scott who wrote (2510)	10/3/2002 5:47:50 PM
From: Glenn Petersen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 3602

SEC to require 'pro forma' explanations By Bloomberg News, 10/3/2002 boston.com WASHINGTON - The Securities and Exchange Commission is preparing a rule to require companies that publish ''pro forma'' financial results to explain how they differ from earnings that follow US accounting standards. Pro forma figures, which exclude costs such as merger expenses, grew popular in the 1990s as technology companies tried to cast their finances in a more favorable light. About 1,500 companies used pro forma results in press releases last year before filing official reports under generally accepted accounting principles, according to industry estimates. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires companies that use pro forma results to show how they compare with earnings that follow US rules, and forbids companies from issuing press releases that omit ''material'' facts. The SEC plans to propose a rule this month to spell out the law, which some say doesn't go far enough. ''You have pro formas that on their face are flat-out misleading, and it occurs often enough to be troubling,'' said Alan Beller, SEC corporation finance director. The law, which tightens oversight of US corporations, was a reaction to audit failures at Enron Corp., WorldCom Inc., and other companies. It required the SEC to appoint an accounting oversight panel, made company boards and auditors more independent, and increased corporate disclosure. Under the planned SEC rule, if a company issues a press release saying its pro forma earnings will be $1 million and its official earnings are to be only $800,000, the company will have to disclose both figures and explain what expenses are excluded from the pro forma figures and why, Beller said. Some accounting experts said the SEC should ban the use of pro forma releases entirely or require them to be issued at the same time as official quarterly reports. This story ran on page E2 of the Boston Globe on 10/3/2002. © Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company.

To: stockman_scott who wrote (2510)	10/30/2002 5:25:43 PM
From: Glenn Petersen	Respond to of 3602

Fastow may be indicted Wednesday Former Enron executive faces fraud charges, sources say msnbc.com WASHINGTON, Oct. 30 — Former Enron executive Andrew Fastow is likely to be indicted by a federal grand jury in Houston Wednesday on fraud and other criminal charges involving the collapsed energy trader, sources familiar with the case said. FASTOW, THE FORMER CHIEF financial officer who is alleged to have masterminded secret partnerships at Enron Corp. , previously had been charged in a criminal complaint with money laundering and conspiring to divert millions of dollars for his own profit. The sources said the indictment would mirror the initial charges brought against Fastow on Oct. 2 that also included securities, wire and mail fraud. Fastow is the highest-ranking official to be charged in the U.S. Justice Department’s continuing investigation of Enron’s spectacular collapse into bankruptcy late last year. Fastow protege Michael Kopper pleaded guilty on Aug. 21 and implicated his former boss in a series of kickback and fraud schemes. He is cooperating with prosecutors. Prosecutors allege Fastow designed transactions that helped Enron massage its earnings by removing money-losing assets from its balance sheet. After bringing the criminal complaint, prosecutors had 30 days to obtain a grand jury indictment, the next step in the legal process. The 30-day deadline ends on Thursday, the sources said. Fastow, 40, appeared briefly in court on Oct. 2 and is free on a $5 million bond agreement. © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.