Convicted

Three former El Paso Corp. natural gas traders convicted last year of conspiracy, as well as some charges of wire fraud and false price reporting in an attempt to influence published price indexes at the beginning of the decade, received lengthy prison sentences in Houston Thursday.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider the appeal of former Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who was convicted in 2006 on 19 criminal charges. In a 3-0 vote, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans last January denied a request to overturn Skilling’s convictions, which the defense claimed were based on incorrect legal theory, faulty jury instructions, a biased jury and prosecutorial misconduct (see NGI, Jan. 12). However, the three-judge panel ordered that Skilling be resentenced, which could reduce the prison term of 24 years and four months. The court agreed with the defense team’s argument that Judge Sim Lake, who presided over Skilling’s trial, had misapplied federal guidelines in enhancing Skilling’s sentence. When Skilling was sentenced, Lake ruled that Skilling’s conduct had endangered a “financial institution” because his actions had damaged the value of Enron’s pension fund. The circuit court found that Enron’s pension fund was not a financial institution. Skilling’s legal team appealed for a review of the case to the Supreme Court in May (see NGI, May 18). The defense team argues that under a federal fraud statute, prosecutors failed to show that Skilling deprived Enron of his “honest services.” The defense also contends that pretrial publicity in Houston, where Enron was headquartered, had prejudiced the jury and led to an unfair trial.

The U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday agreed to consider the appeal of former Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who was convicted in 2006 on 19 criminal charges.

Jamie Olis, Dynegy Inc.’s former senior director of tax planning, was resentenced in Houston Friday to six years in prison. Olis had been convicted in 2003 and sentenced to 24 years in prison for his part in helping Dynegy inflate its reported cash flow in 2001 through a complex scheme known as Project Alpha (see NGI, March 29, 2004).

Jamie Olis, Dynegy Inc.’s former senior director of tax planning, was resentenced in Houston Friday to six years in prison. Olis had been convicted in 2003 and sentenced to 24 years in prison for his part in helping Dynegy inflate its reported cash flow in 2001 through a complex scheme known as Project Alpha (see Daily GPI, Nov. 17, 2003).

Former Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who was convicted last month on 19 counts of conspiracy, fraud and insider trading, has filed a motion seeking a new trial or acquittal on all of the criminal counts.

Westar Energy’s former CEO, David C. Wittig, and former executive vice president, Douglas T. Lake, were convicted of corporate fraud Monday in a federal court in Kansas.