Bankers Each Get 37 Months in Enron Case

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Associated Press

HOUSTON (AP) — Three British bankers were sentenced Friday to just over three years in prison for their roles in a fraudulent scheme with former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow, and they're hoping to serve some of that time back home.

A federal judge sentenced David Bermingham, Giles Darby and Gary Mulgrew each to 37 months.

They each pleaded guilty in November to one count of wire fraud as part of a plea agreement after initially saying they were innocent of colluding with Fastow in a secret financial scam in 2000 to enrich themselves at their employer's expense.

"I'm glad this is finally over," Bermingham told reporters after being sentenced. "I'm looking forward to getting back to my family."


Read more: http://money.excite.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt_top.jsp?news_id=ap-d8uvjss00&

[Sarah Ibarruri]

1. What's really horrible about this is that mastermind Fastow only got 6 years of prison.

The U.S. District Court judge said Fastow deserved mercy and only gave him 6 years rather than the 10. Why? Probably because it was a rich criminal. If it'd been a poor criminal, I seriously doubt the judge would've had mercy.

[barb162]

7. Or the young kids or something influenced his decision.

I'd like the judge to explain why he deserved mercy.

[oasis]

2. I won't be satisfied until Wendy Gramm, wife of former texas senator, Phil Gramm,

is indicted and does time.:puke:

[balantz]

3. Hang 'em by their short hairs!

[DCKit]

5. Screw that!! Take all their money and give it back to the stockholders!

The one common thread in almost all white collar criminal prosecutions is the failure of the courts to impose any penalty that even begins to address the damages.

Until the courts get serious about punishing the underlying behavior, it will continue.

[RuleOfNah]

6. As another poster pointed out.

Bank robbers are not treated as gently as these traitors are treated.

[OKthatsIT]

4. HEY...that's not fair!!! If I robbed 1 bank, I'd get 10 years!!!

They robbed the equivient of 500,000 banks!!!!

("The collapse wiped out thousands of jobs, more than $60 billion in market value and more than $2 billion in pension plans.")

[barb162]

8. Three years isn't a long sentence; they deserved far more.