WASHINGTON – Federal investigators are reportedly looking for a rat to finger the big cheeses who may have run afoul of the law during Enron Corp.’s colossal collapse.
The Los Angeles Times reports today that the federal investigation of Enron, which could take years of following a paper trail, might be shortened if prosecutors can get the cooperation of someone high up enough in the hierarchy to know the energy firm’s operations and be able to benefit from a deal.
“It’s obvious: You look for the weak points, someone you have leverage on, who is in a position where they know a lot and has a great deal to lose,” the Times quotes one FBI official saying. “That will be one of the first points of the investigation. You gain enough information against that person to say, ‘This is the only course of action for you that makes sense.'”
The FBI told the paper such a process is under way, but didn’t discuss details.
Two senators investigating the burgeoning scandal told the paper it appears that some executives both at Enron and at its accounting firm, Andersen LLP, may have engaged in potentially criminal behavior. Also yesterday, two Bush Cabinet members said they never considered intervening during Enron’s collapse into bankruptcy – and didn’t tell President Bush about the company’s calls for help.
Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and Commerce Secretary Don Evans yesterday both recounted the calls they got from Enron CEO Kenneth Lay, and how they dismissed any suggestion of intervening for the company.
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Two top members of President Bush’s team yesterday suggested the worst of the recession is behind us now.
“We’re probably a little closer to the end than we are the beginning,” Commerce Secretary Don Evans told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill said, “I think the information we have so far in the data on economic performance is a mix, but I think it’s mixed toward the positive side.”
-Deborah Orin