Crimes of Others Wrecked Enron, Ex-Chief Says
HOUSTON, June 22 - There was a time when Kenneth L. Lay's close relationship with President Bush brought him power and influence in Washington that was virtually unparalleled among his colleagues in corporate America.Now, Mr. Lay, the former chairman and chief executive of Enron, fears those ties may only serve to bring him criminal charges.
``If anything, being friends with the Bush family, including the President, has made my situation more difficult,'' Mr. Lay said in a recent interview, ``because it's probably a tougher decision not to indict me than to indict me.'' For more than two years, he has been the nation's silent pariah.
Now, on the eve of what may be the government's final decision on whether to charge him with a crime, Mr. Lay is talking for the first time about the company's collapse in 2001 and the scandal that enveloped it. In more than six hours of interviews with The New York Times, Mr. Lay remained steadfast in his expressions of innocence, even as he acknowledged, as head of the company, accountability for the debacle rests rightfully with him. ``I take full responsibility for what happened at Enron,'' said Mr. Lay, 62. ``But saying that, I know in my mind that I did nothing criminal.''
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