Ex - Dynegy Exec Gets 24 Years for Fraud

[Eye and Monkey]

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-energy-dynegy-crime.html

By REUTERS
Published: March 26, 2004
Filed at 0:00 a.m. ET

HOUSTON (Reuters) - A federal judge on Thursday sentenced former Dynegy Inc. tax executive Jamie Olis to 24 years in prison for his role in an Enron-style scheme to burnish the company's finances by disguising a $300 million debt.

The 38-year-old lawyer and accountant was convicted in a November trial of six counts of criminal conspiracy and securities, wire and mail fraud for his role in the complicated 2001 financial transaction dubbed ``Project Alpha.'' U.S. District Judge Sim Lake also fined Olis $25,000.

Lake, who presided over Olis' trial, said he took no pleasure following the federal laws that dictated such a stiff sentence for a first-time white collar offender.

``Sometimes good people commit bad acts, and that is what happened in this case,'' Lake told Olis. He permitted Olis to remain free on bond and turn himself in to prison.

more -

[tlcandie]

1. Yay! That's one for the people!!!

:toast: :bounce:

[w4rma]

2. Something got done. Good. (nt)

[madrchsod]

3. 80% before parole

he`ll be out in time to retire....

[tlcandie]

4. Serious? I'm not registered with WP or NYTimes.. I haven't bothered...

If that is true...that sounds more like the normal whitewash crap we hear all the time! :(

[burrowowl]

5. I agree

why are the real big crooks NOT in orange jumpsuits, including Bu$hco, his sperm donor, etc.

[Eye and Monkey]

6. note: (Judge) "Lake...said he took no pleasure following the federal laws"

Had Judge Lake had his way, the sentence wouldn't have been as lengthy.

Who is Judge Lake?
* graduating from Texas A&M
* received an Army commission
* In Vietnam Judge Lake worked as a prosecutor
* worked in the Litigation and Energy and Environmental Law sections of large Houston lawfirm
* In 1988 Judge Lake was appointed to the bench by President Ronald Reagan

http://www.thehoustonlawyer.com/aa_nov/aa_depart/page42/page42.htm#two

Comment: with a record like that, and a bench that covers Houston, I feel confident that some of his decisions have perhaps sided with energy companies. Perhaps I am a cynic.

[DavidFL]

10. I wonder if that "large Houston law firm"

happens to be Baker Botts.

Ever the optimist, I'm hoping that maybe when more of these white collar country club types start getting stiff sentences, Congress will rethink its sometimes unduly harsh sentencing guidelines federal judges are required to follow.

[SemperEadem]

7. and sometimes bad people do bad things and get caught

just like this clown did... he was a lawyer--he knew better because he knew what the law was. He's got what he deserves.

[Dover]

8. Small fish..........

...
New laws enacted last year in response to a wave of corporate chicanery, and in 2001, stiffened the penalty range for white collar crimes, putting them equal with offenses like bank robbery.

Michael Shelby, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas said Olis' harsh punishment was deserved, since thousands of investors lost their savings over Project Alpha.

Shelby said the investigation into Alpha is active, but would not say if the probe was focusing on six unindicted co-conspirators named during the Olis trial, including Dynegy's former chief financial officer.

Olis' attorney, David Gerger, criticized prosecutors for focusing on a lower-level executive like Olis instead of on his bosses.

``The government is on a witch hunt, and today the witch hunt netted a very small fish,'' Gerger told reporters. He said he had not yet decided whether to appeal.

...snip...

Two other Dynegy employees, Helen Sharkey and Gene Shannon Foster, Olis' boss, each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. Lake is due to sentence both on Aug. 19, and each faces a maximum of five years in prison.

[SoCalDem]

9. He's 38, rich, and he's gonna "turn himself in" ..to spend 24 yrs

locked up????

Even money says he bails... He's probably got wads of cash in the caymans, and I'm sure he could get his hands on a boat..

Rich guys like this don't just willingly sit around watching Oprah, until it's time to turn themselves in..