El pensamiento conspirativo ya esta instalado firmemente la conciencia popular. No se trata simplemente de paranoicos marginales que no aceptan el mundo como es.
Antes de ayer murió de un infarto Ken Lay, el fundador de Enron, y el responsable principal de una de los fraudes corporativas más grandes de la historia de los estados unidos.
Estaba a punto de ser sentenciado y condenado a 45 años de carcel.
Ayer leí en el blog conspirativo Rigorous Intuition un post del autor del sitio, Jeff Wells, especulando que Lay no murió. Esta bien. Es muy posible. Era muy amigo de gente extremadamente poderosa.
Pero esto es lo asombroso. Hoy la tapa del New York Post titula:
Before they put Cheato Lay’s coffin in the grave CHECK HE'S IN IT
(Antes que meten el ataúd del tramposo Lay en el suelo ASEGURANSE QUE EL ESTE ADENTRO).
Imagen: Fuente
Vía: Huffington Post
6.7.06
La muerte de Ken Lay: conspiración para las masas
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July 6, 2006
Facing Prison, Lay Believed He Had Future
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 8:23 a.m. ET
HOUSTON (AP) -- Just last week, Enron Corp. founder and convicted felon Kenneth Lay told his pastor he was at peace with his future, even if it included prison. Lay maintained that he was innocent of fraud and conspiracy in Enron's searing scandal that left thousands jobless and wiped out billions from investors.
The former corporate celebrity who ascended from near-poverty as a minister's son in Missouri to the pinnacle of America's business elite died Wednesday of what a county coroner said was heart disease while vacationing in Aspen, Colo. He was 64.
''I know he looked to be in good health. He looked like things were going well for him. He was in church last Sunday,'' said his pastor, Steve Wende of Houston's First United Methodist Church.
Lay faced spending the rest of his life in prison after his convictions May 25 that ended a blockbuster trial stemming from one of the biggest business debacles in U.S. history.
Wende said Lay told him last week that he was at peace with what he may face, and he bore no ill will toward jurors who convicted him.
''What he did feel like was that he had a future. He even brought up the subject of prison and said if he did go to prison, he felt like God could use him there,'' Wende said.
Scott Thompson, chief deputy coroner in Pitkin County, Colo., said Lay died of natural causes. Dr. Robert Kurtzman, Mesa County coroner in Grand Junction, Colo., said an autopsy showed Lay died of heart disease. He said there was evidence that Lay had also suffered a previous heart attack.
Lay was considered a visionary who had President Bush's ear during Enron's halcyon days, but his reputation and monumental wealth shattered with that of his company. He spent his last years optimistically insisting he was no criminal, even after he became a felon.
''I guess when you're facing the rest of your life in jail and in your heart you know you're an innocent man, I guess it's too much to bear,'' said close friend Willie Alexander of Lay's sudden death.
Lay had stayed out of the public eye since he and former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling were convicted May 25 of fraud and conspiracy for lying to employees and investors about Enron's financial health. Lay was convicted of six counts of fraud and conspiracy, while Skilling was convicted of 19 of 28 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors.
Lay also was convicted of bank fraud and lying to banks in a separate, non-jury trial related to his personal banking.
Lay was scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 23, along with Skilling, who also faces a long prison term. Lay's death will not affect the government's case against Skilling, who will appeal his convictions.
Skilling's lawyer, Daniel Petrocelli, described the ex-CEO as ''devastated.''
''Jeff and Ken worked closely over the years, and Jeff will miss him dearly,'' Petrocelli said.
Lay displayed no signs of ill health throughout the grueling four-month trial that started Jan. 30. He was consistently upbeat and smiling, holding hands with his wife, Linda, outside of court.
But The Denver Post reported Thursday a fellow diner said Lay looked run down while eating dinner at a restaurant Monday.
''I said to my husband ... 'He looks terrible,''' said Jennifer Alter of Basalt, who ate at an adjacent table at the Bella Mia Restaurant in El Jebel, west of Aspen. ''I actually felt really sad. I just felt sorry for him.''
Lay led Enron's transformation from a staid natural gas pipeline company formed by a 1985 merger to an energy and trading conglomerate that reached No. 7 on the Fortune 500 in 2000 and claimed $101 billion in annual revenues. He traveled in the highest business and political circles, lived an extravagant lifestyle and gave generously -- as much as $6.1 million in 2001.
His status in Houston evaporated when Enron spiraled into bankruptcy protection in December 2001. The crash obliterated Enron's more than $60 billion in market value and thousands of jobs, and Lay was pushed out as chairman and CEO in January 2002.
The government launched a widespread fraud investigation that enveloped Enron's finance, trading, broadband and retail energy units. The probe amassed 16 guilty pleas from ex-executives, eight of whom testified against Skilling and Lay.
Lay and Skilling insisted no fraud occurred at Enron except from a few employees who skimmed money behind their backs, but jurors were unconvinced.
''I loved Enron very much. And I loved Enron's employees very much. I spent half my professional life running Enron. I think we built a great company. We changed energy markets around the world,'' Lay testified during the trial.
Prosecutors in Lay's trial declined comment Wednesday, both on his death and what may become of their effort to seek $43.5 million they say Lay collected as part of the conspiracy. The government is seeking $139.3 million from Skilling.
The Pitkin County Sheriff's Department said officers were called to Lay's house in Old Snowmass, Colo., shortly after 1 a.m. MDT (3 a.m. EDT). He was taken to Aspen Valley Hospital, where he died at 3:11 a.m. (5:11 a.m. EDT).
Lay spokeswoman Kelly Kimberly said in a statement that Lay and his wife, Linda, arrived in Snowmass on Monday.
''Mrs. Lay and their five children are grieving the sudden loss of their husband and father and appreciate the many kind words of support and sympathy,'' Kimberly said. She said a memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church, but no date has been set.
Before the scandal, Enron was the single largest contributor to President Bush, who nicknamed Lay ''Kenny Boy.'' Lay said he was closer to the president's father, former President George H.W. Bush.
''It was sad to hear the news of the death of someone I considered a friend,'' the elder Bush said in a statement Wednesday.
During the trial Lay had been expected to charm jurors, but instead came across as irritable and combative.
Lay defended his personal spending, including a $200,000 yacht for Linda Lay's birthday party in early 2001, despite $100 million in personal debt. He told jurors it was ''difficult to turn off that lifestyle like a spigot.''
Lay also defended how he borrowed more than $70 million from Enron in 2001 -- even as the company was spiraling -- and repaid most of those loans with company stock.
''I wanted very badly to believe what they were saying,'' juror Wendy Vaughan said after the verdicts were announced. ''There were places in the testimony I felt their character was questionable.''
Lay was born in Tyrone, Mo., and spent his childhood helping his family make ends meet. His father ran a general store and sold stoves until he became a minister, and Lay delivered newspapers and mowed lawns. He attended the University of Missouri, found his calling in economics, and went to work at Exxon Mobil Corp.'s predecessor, Humble Oil & Refining.
He joined the Navy, served his time at the Pentagon, and then served as undersecretary for the Department of the Interior before he returned to business. He became an executive at Florida Gas, then Transco Energy in Houston, and later became CEO of Houston Natural Gas. In 1985, HNG merged with InterNorth in Omaha, Neb., to form Enron, and Lay became chairman and CEO of the combined company the next year.
Lay is survived by his wife, five children and stepchildren and 12 grandchildren.
------
Associated Press Writers Kim Nguyen in Denver, David Koenig in Dallas and Rich Matthews in Houston contributed to this report.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Obit-Lay.html?pagewanted=print
LAY HIM LOW: ENRON'S CHIEF CROOK DUCKS BIG HOUSE BY DROPPING DEAD
By MARSHA KRANES
July 6, 2006 -- Enron founder Ken Lay, the slippery schemer convicted of fraud and conspiracy in the energy giant's monumental collapse, dodged jail after all.
Lay, who faced up to 45 years in prison at his scheduled October sentencing, died of a heart attack early yesterday while vacationing with his wife Linda in Colorado.
His death at age 64 came six weeks after his conviction, and just five days after federal prosecutors asked a judge to force Lay to forfeit $43.5 million he pocketed while conspiring to defraud thousands of investors and employees of his once-mighty international energy conglomerate.
Lay - free on $5 million bond that allowed him to stay in either Houston or Colorado while awaiting sentencing - was on a week's vacation in the posh Aspen resort area when sheriff's deputies and the local ambulance corps received a "medical emergency" call at 3:41 a.m. Eastern time.
They rushed to a house in Old Snowmass and transported Lay to Aspen Valley Hospital. He was pronounced dead there at 5:11 a.m., said Joe DiSalvo, investigations director for the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office.
An autopsy performed by the Mesa County coroner showed he had died of heart disease.
The coroner, Dr. Robert Kurtzman, said the autopsy also revealed that Lay had suffered a heart attack in the past.
"It's a very sad ending for the whole Lay family saga. There are very few people of his age and abilities who flew as high or who fell so low," said John Olson, an analyst who enraged Lay with his incredulous reactions to Enron's often indecipherable financial reports.
Lay's pastor said the ex-Enron exec had succumbed to "a massive coronary."
"His death was totally unexpected. Apparently, his heart simply gave out," said Steve Wende, pastor of the First United Methodist Church of Houston, which the disgraced Enron founder and his wife attended regularly.
A Lay family spokeswomen said the family would have no immediate comment.
"The Lays have a very large family with whom they need to communicate, and out of respect for the family, we will release further details at a later date," said Kelly Kimberly.
It was not known if Lay had been ailing recently. But during his grueling four-month trial - at which he told jurors he had "achieved the American nightmare" - he often appeared fatigued.
Lay, who enjoyed living large, once owned four homes in Aspen's exclusive Roaring Fork Valley, and continued to visit the popular resort even after he was forced to sell all his houses in the wake of the 2001 Enron collapse.
The Old Snowmass house where he was vacationing is owned by I.V. Pabst, according to public records.
Fighting back tears at the end of her driveway yesterday, Pabst refused to disclose whether Lay had rented her house or was staying there as her guest.
"Ken was a wonderful, kindhearted, generous neighbor, friend and father," she told reporters. "In my humble opinion, he was sorely maligned by a bunch of people who didn't know who he was."
"He loved being here," she said. "He was happy, happy, happy."
Former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling, who was convicted of fraud with Lay on May 25 for hiding the company's failing finances, refused to comment on his co-conspirator's death when reached by phone by the Associated Press.
But Skilling's attorney told the Houston Chronicle, "Jeff is devastated by Ken's passing."
"Jeff worked closely with Ken for many years and Ken's passing is a tremendous loss not only to Jeff but to all of the people who worked with Ken and got to know his. He was a good man," said lawyer Daniel Petrocelli.
Both Lay and Skilling steadfastly insisted there was no wrongdoing or conspiracy behind Enron's bankruptcy. But a jury determined that the company's finances were based on a tangled web of fraudulent partnerships and schemes, not the eye-popping profits that it reported to investors and the public. Lay claimed the company was brought down by bad press, colluding short-sellers, and the corruption of former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow.
He painted himself as a victim of Enron's collapse and planned to appeal his conviction.
"He was proceeding with his appeal, and was about to retain me to do it," Sam Buffone, a Washington, D.C., appeals lawyer, told the Houston Chronicle.
Buffone said that in recent weeks, he had met with Lay to discuss his case, and had been helping prepare for Lay's sentencing hearing.
During his trial, Lay, known as an affable charmer, became irritable and combative, and sometimes self-pitying, on the stand.
He testified that he and his wife, Linda, were once worth $400 million, and complained that it was "all gone."
He said he had to sell his Aspen houses and three homes in Galveston, Texas, to pay his debts and legal fees, and claimed that his only remaining assets were his $4 million Houston condo and his three cars.
Federal prosecutors disagreed. They claimed he and his wife still had millions in annuities and other investments.
Lay arrogantly defended his post-Enron extravagant spending - including $200,000 on his wife's birthday party - despite $100 million in personal debt.
"It was difficult to turn off that lifestyle like a spigot," he told the jurors. In addition to the fraud and conspiracy conviction, Lay also was found guilty at a separate, nonjury trial of bank fraud and making false statements to banks about his personal finances.
In Washington yesterday, White House spokesman Tony Snow distanced President Bush from the former confidant and big-time contributor he had nicknamed "Kenny Boy."
"The president has described Ken Lay as an acquaintance, and many of the president's acquaintances have passed on during his time in office," Snow said.
Lay was born into poverty.
The son of a poor Baptist preacher in Tyrone, Mo., he spent his childhood helping his family make ends meet by delivering newspapers and mowing lawns.
At the University of Missouri, he found his calling in economics. And after graduation, he found his future - in energy - when he went to work for Humble Oil & Refining, which later became part of ExxonMobil.
After a stint in the Navy and a job as an Interior Department undersecretary, he returned to the business world, becoming an executive at Florida Gas, then Transco Energy in Houston, and later as CEO of Houston Natural Gas.
In 1985, Enron was created when HNG merged with InterNorth of Omaha, and Lay was named its chairman and chief executive officer.
The ever social and personable Lay quickly transformed a staid natural gas pipeline company into an international energy powerhouse that reached No. 7 on the Fortune 500 list in 2000 and claimed $101 billion in annual revenues.
He was making big money - and living big, too. Between 1999 and 2001, he earned $220 million.
He contributed generously to the social, cultural and charitable causes - and to the political campaigns of Bush and others.
And he used his cash and newly won connections to head the lobbying effort on behalf of energy deregulation.
During Enron's meteoric rise, his sometimes golfing buddy, President Bill Clinton, helped him land a $3 billion Power-plant project in India.
And he won renown for Enron when he got the Houston Astros to name their stadium after the company.
When the Enron scandal erupted, Lay hoped his connections would help him out with a government bailout or a face-saving merger - but none of his friends wanted to risk going to bat for the corruption-scarred company.
With Post Wire Services
marsha.kranes@nypost.com
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/lay_him_low__enrons_chief_crook_ducks_big_house_by_dropping_dead_nationalnews_marsha_kranes.htm
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