Fastows expected to plead guilty in Enron cases

The Houston Chronicle ^ | 1/16/2004 | Mary Flood

[1riot1ranger]

Fastows expected to plead guilty in Enron cases By MARY FLOOD

High-flying ex-Enron couple Lea and Andrew Fastow are scheduled to plead guilty Wednesday at the Houston federal courthouse, the Chronicle learned today.

The plea deals come one week after their agreements to plead guilty seemed secure, then foundered.

Andrew Fastow, the former Enron chief financial officer, is set to plead guilty before U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt at some time prior to his wife Lea pleading guilty before U.S. District Judge David Hittner.

The plea bargains have been in limbo for more than a week after Hittner threw a wrench into agreements between prosecutors and defense attorneys to have the couple plead guilty rather than go to trial.

Judge Hittner said he was reluctant to agree, without an extensive pre-sentence investigation, to sentence Lea Fastow to a five-month prison term on one count of filing a false tax return. That sentence would likely also carry a five-month term of house arrest after the prison term.

When Lea Fastow's deal fell apart, the agreement for Andrew Fastow to plead guilty was put on hold.

It appears Lea Fastow has now agreed to go ahead and submit to the pre-sentence report and hope Hittner decides to sentence her as the government and her attorneys agreed.

Lawyers in the case have indicated the likely range of punishment for her one tax offense would be 10 months to 16 months in prison.

Andrew Fastow's deal is for a 10-year prison term.

Lea Fastow is due to offer her guilty plea at 4 p.m., a time originally set for lawyers to come and address their concerns about questionnaires filled out last week by 225 potential jurors. She was facing trial on Feb. 10.

The original plea agreement last week had the two pleading out about 30 minutes apart.

[1riot1ranger]

Maybe this is it?!

[1riot1ranger]

Thought you would be interested in this.

[freeangel]

Restitution to the people they bilked?

[Clemenza]

ENRON! HALIBURTON! ALL A PLOT BY BUSH! ELECT DEAN! --- Mantra around New York City

[Liz]

The plea deal had better include the condition that the Fastows have to cough up information about every single solitary cent they stole from Enron and its shareholders, pensioneers, and middle class workers...........whether its deposited in the (gag) "Fastow Foundation," parked offshore, or someplace else (where the calculating Fastows intended to get at it when the heat was off).

The Feds hopefully formulated the deal on condition that if the Fastows lie about even a penny of their ill-gotten gains, the deal is off.

That would be the only decent remedy for the people the Fastows ripped off.

[Liz]

See this?

[drypowder]

The plea deal had better include the condition that the Fastows have to cough up information about every single solitary cent they stole

as well as info on the others who (Ken Lay) ripped off the company

[laconic]

Liz, the Fastows themselves probably can't figure out the tangled web of offshore partnerships and worthless debt parks they used to swindle Enron shareholders. The biggest howler I read about Fastow finance was how Enron booked a $230 million fool-the-shareholders PROFIT on a joint venture with Blockbuster Video (the latter not at fault) yet IT HAD NOT SOLD A SINGLE SUBSCRIPTION to nor received a cent in revenue for the video service.

[laconic]

I wonder if the thieves will be forced to pay back the $13,500 in moving expenses from NJ to Houston for Fastow's parents that the "Fastow Foundation" purportedly paid. Such a "charitable" organization.

[Liz]

Liz, the Fastows themselves probably can't figure out the tangled web of offshore
partnerships and worthless debt parks they used to swindle Enron shareholders.

Hmmmm, I'd like to believe it but my take is that Fastow calculatedly pulled off
schemes for his and his wife's benefit.......his brother also was included in the deals.

However, I could imagine that Andy might have had a fit of (ahem) forgetfulness perhaps
while he was busy doing his "compassion" act and getting all that great publicity about his
being a (gag) "humanitarian" doling out Foundation money (most of it stolen).

[Liz]

Ratting on Lay and Skilling is a given.

[zarf]

Mark my words, these two will walk with reduced sentences.

There is no Justice when it comes to wealthy Wall Street whores likes these two creeps.

They should spend 20 years in jail, all their assets confiscated and their children placed in social services.

Anything less is pure bull crap.

[Liz]

Yeah, we're all cynical about creeps like the Fastows. Let's hope the feds deal is airtight.

Andy is looking at 10 years and confiscation of his ill-gotten gains. Lea is looking at a cement cell block.

And Enron pensioneers, workers and shareholders who got screwed are knitting and muttering "guillotine."

[RedWhiteBlue]

Judge Hittner said he was reluctant to agree, without an extensive pre-sentence investigation, to sentence Lea Fastow to a five-month prison term on one count of filing a false tax return.

One count for filing a false tax return??? What about numerous other counts for the receipt of stolen property?

[st_xavier_bomber]

Thanks Liz.

Now that they have the people, maybe they'll get the company as well.

Unless SEC goes along with Enron's latest application, it can't hire a lawyer to represent it anywhere else but Oregon 30 days after SEC's order denying their 2001 and 2002 exemption applications is released. I expect that order shortly. I expect it will also deny their frivolous post decision application for exemption as dealer brokers.

Poor Enron, no one can be paid to defend it and it can't defend itself.

[laconic]

I hope the next words Lea hears after leaving court are "Here's a mop and a rag for your head, sister, now get to work". I hope the next words Andy hears after leaving court are: "make sure those toilet bowls gleam whiter than a debutante's smile".

[1riot1ranger]

The Feds hopefully formulated the deal on condition that if the Fastows lie about even a penny of their ill-gotten gains, the deal is off.
That would be the only decent remedy for the people the Fastows ripped off.

Agree. But I want the guilty plea and the deal is off only to sentence him to more time. I also want to see him cooperating. Otherwise all the other plea deals (Kooper, et al.) are probably not worth much.

[Liz]

Heheh......yeah.

[ken5050]

I've heard that it will require complete disgorgement, PLUS a fine of several millions......FYI.the plea agreement is usually posted on the court's website fairly soon..can you, or any other here..get around to posting a link.?...

[1riot1ranger]

An earlier article mentioned penalties of $20 million and ten years in prison for Andy. I thought that I read somewhere that sentences above say 12 months had to be served in the pen and under could be served in a camp or half-way house. That was part of the reason that Lea didn't want to do more than 5 months. Do you guys have any info about that?