Monday, Jun. 23, 2003

CEO Scandals: Get Your Scorecard

By Kate Novack

For Martha Stewart, it was a tough week. Her friend and former Imclone Chief Sam Waksal was sentenced to prison for insider trading. For us, keeping track of the growing roster of scandal-plagued corporate execs has become a dizzying task. Be honest: Did you even know that Freddie Mac was a company and not a government agency? A cheat sheet. --By Kate Novack

Enron

EXECUTIVES: Former CFO Andrew Fastow has pleaded not guilty to fraud charges. Ex-chairman Ken Lay, left, and former CEO Jeff Skilling have yet to be charged with any crimes.

COMPANY: After its market cap fell $60 billion, Enron is mostly scrambling to pay back creditors.

Tyco

EXECUTIVES: Ex-chief Dennis Kozlowski and his CFO have been charged with looting $600 million from the company. They deny the charges but could face 25 years in prison.

COMPANY: New management is still trying to fix accounting problems, but the stock is gaining.

WorldCom

EXECUTIVES: Founder Bernie Ebbers has not been charged, though the ex-CFO has. Two new reports allege a host of financial tricks were employed to boost earnings.

COMPANY: Still in bankruptcy. Its $500 million settlement with the SEC is under review.

ImClone

EXECUTIVES: A federal judge sentenced ex-CEO Waksal to seven years--the first prison term for an exec implicated in the wave of scandals.

COMPANY: News that ImClone's cancer drug is back on track has boosted the stock--but it's worth only half what it was pre-scandal.

HealthSouth

EXECUTIVES: Former CEO Richard Scrushy denied allegations of accounting fraud and hasn't yet been charged with any crime. But 11 former employees have pleaded guilty.

COMPANY: It's flirting with bankruptcy. Can the rehabilitation firm rehabilitate itself?

Adelphia

EXECUTIVES: Five executives have been indicted for fraud, including founder John Rigas, above, and two of his sons. They pleaded not guilty, and a trial is set for January.

COMPANY: Investors have an eye on the cable operator, which has made a modest recovery this year.