HOUSTON, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- A Houston jury Wednesday acquitted a former Enron accountant but found five other defendants guilty of wire fraud and conspiracy.
The jury cleared Sheila Kahanek of all charges but returned guilty verdicts on all charges against the other defendants, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Former Enron Vice President Dan Boyle and former Merrill Lynch bankers William Fuhs, Robert Furst, James A. Brown and Daniel Bayly were convicted. Brown and Boyle were also convicted of making false statements.
Prosecutors charged the defendants conspired to boost Enron's profit sheet through the bogus sale of three Nigerian power plant barges four years ago.
Defense attorneys argued their clients believed Merrill Lynch was taking a real risk by buying Enron's stake in the barges, making the deal a true sale.
The jury received the case last Thursday after hearing more than six weeks of testimony in the first criminal trial involving the collapse of Enron.
Sentencing will take place in March.
