Who is who in Enron

Ken Lay

Enron’s former chairman and CEO has not been charged. Lay, who holds a doctorate in economics, was the early architect of the energy trading company, building it through mergers in the 1980s. A longtime associate of the Bush family, Lay was nicknamed "Kenny Boy" years ago by President Bush and became a major contributor to Bush's campaigns for governor and president. He stepped down as CEO in February 2001 but returned briefly later in the year as the company was collapsing.

Andrew Fastow

Enron’s former chief financial officer pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud on Jan. 14, 2004. The plea calls for him to serve a 10-year prison term and help prosecutors in their investigations of other Enron executives. Under the deal, numerous other counts against Fastow will be dismissed if he fulfills the terms of the plea agreement, including forfeiting $23.8 million of his assets. Prosecutors had accused Fastow of making millions of dollars through elaborate partnerships he created at the expense of the company and its shareholders. Fastow, who holds an MBA from Northwestern, joined Enron in 1990 and became a close associate of CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who named him CFO. Fastow is credited with setting up the off-the-books partnerships that benefited Enron by hiding debt and inflating revenue. He was dismissed from the company on Oct. 24, 2001.

Lea Fastow

On May 6, 2004 Lea Fastow pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of filing a false tax form, and was sentenced to a 12-month prison term. Fastow was an assistant treasurer for Enron and is married to former finance chief Andrew Fastow.

Ben Glisan Jr.

Enron’s former treasurer pleaded guilty to conspiracy in September 2003 and became the first former Enron executive put behind bars. Glisan joined Enron in 1996 and was fired in February 2002. He had earned $1 million on a $5,800 investment in one of the company’s partnerships. Prior to working for Enron, Glisan worked for Coopers & Lybrand accounting firm in Dallas and Arthur Andersen in Houston.

David Duncan

Accounting firm Arthur Andersen’s former top Enron auditor pleaded guilty in October 2002 to obstruction of justice and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. Duncan admitted that he ordered Enron-related documents shredded two days after learning of a federal probe.

Jeff Skilling

Former chief executive officer, was indicted Feb. 19, 2004, and charged with leading a scheme to mislead the government and investors about Enron's financial condition. The highest-ranking Enron official to face charges, he has pleaded not guilty to all counts and is free on $5 million bail. Skilling, a former McKinsey & Co. consultant with a Harvard MBA, joined Enron in 1990. He quickly rose up the corporate ladder, transforming the Houston firm from a pipeline company to an operation involved in trading energy and other commodities. He succeeded Ken Lay as CEO in 2001 and resigned after less than seven months, citing personal reasons. The company collapsed only a few months later.

J. Clifford Baxter

Vice chairman of Enron and a close friend of CEO Jeffrey Skilling, he resigned from the company in May 2001. Eight months later Baxter was found dead in his wife’s Mercedes after committing suicide. He was believed to have been deeply depressed by the company’s collapse. Whistle-blower Sherron Watkins, in her memo to Chairman Ken Lay, had noted that Baxter had complained to Skilling about the “inappropriateness of our transactions" with one of the company's off-the-book partnerships.
 

Richard Causey

Former Enron chief accounting officer arrived at the company in 1991 after a career with accounting firm Arthur Andersen. Causey has linked Skilling to the Enron partnerships that hid millions of dollars of losses. Charges against Causey have been expected since his name was mentioned in the October 2002 criminal complaint against Andrew Fastow.

Sherron Watkins

An Enron vice president who met with and wrote a memo to Ken Lay describing accounting irregularities, she was the key whistle-blower of the scandal. Watkins co-authored the book "Power Failure: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Enron," about her experiences at the company.