Enron accountant likely to surrender

HOUSTON -- Enron Corp.'s former top accountant was expected to surrender early today to federal authorities on charges related to the disgraced energy giant's 2001 collapse, sources told the Associated Press.

Richard A. Causey, 44, had been expected to surrender and appear in federal court in Houston two weeks ago on charges stemming from the Justice Department's two-year Enron investigation, two sources close to the investigation said Wednesday on the condition of anonymity.

But Causey's case was delayed when a plea bargain package for former Enron finance chief Andrew Fastow and his wife, Lea, hit a snag.

Last week, the Fastows pleaded guilty in their separate cases -- he to two counts of conspiracy, she to one count of filing a false tax return.

Fastow agreed to serve a decade in prison after he cooperates with prosecutors looking to build cases against his bosses, former Enron CEOs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling.

Last week the Fastows pleaded guilty in their separate cases, and their guilty pleas needed to be secured before moving on to Causey, the sources said.

It was unclear what charges Causey would face, but the sources said they expected him to face a criminal complaint or an indictment in the aftermath of Andrew Fastow's guilty plea and subsequent cooperation with prosecutors.

"Rick Causey has done absolutely nothing wrong, and we will vigorously contest any charges the government may bring," Mark Hulkower, one of Causey's attorneys, said Wednesday.

Fastow admitted that he and others in Enron's senior management misled investors about Enron's finances to inflate its stock and that he schemed to enrich himself and others at shareholders' expense.

Causey, like Fastow, reported directly to Lay and Skilling. Causey and Fastow split financial duties at Enron.

Fastow's October 2002 indictment referred to the chief accounting officer as having a secret deal with Fastow to ensure the accountant wouldn't lose money when one of many partnerships he ran did business with Enron. Causey was chief accounting officer when the partnerships were operating.

Lea Fastow is awaiting a pre-sentence investigation by federal probation authorities. That review, due in April, will determine whether the judge in her case will accept a plea agreement guaranteeing her five months in prison and five months' home confinement.

Causey was one of many Enron executives who joined the energy giant after working at its former outside auditor, Arthur Andersen LLP. He started at Enron in 1991 as assistant controller and worked his way up to executive vice president and chief accounting officer in 1999.

He was fired in February 2002 after an internal probe into the bankrupt energy giant's collapse determined that he had failed to adequately review deals Enron did with Fastow's partnerships. Causey was supposed to safeguard Enron's interests.

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