Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe

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Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe

Postby greencrow0 » Tue Oct 24, 2006 11:08 am

        <!--EZCODE BOLD START--><strong>Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe</strong><!--EZCODE BOLD END--><br>Why else would a judge clear his record, columnist asks.<br>G. Jeffrey Aaron<br>October 22, 2006<br><br><!--EZCODE QUOTE START--><blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr>I sometimes hear that Elvis Presley isn't really dead, a notion supported by the alleged sightings of "The King" at various shopping malls around the United States.<br><br>I've heard the same thing about Tupac Shakur, the rap star who died in a hail of gunfire in Las Vegas 10 years ago. No one claims to have seen Tupac at a shopping mall. But the amount of music and the two feature movies released after his reported death make me think he's not really dead either.<br><br>With those two examples in mind, I advance the following theory: Kenneth Lay -- the disgraced CEO of Enron who was convicted of 10 counts of fraud, conspiracy and lying to banks in two separate cases related to the collapse of the Houston-based company he founded, who died of heart disease July 5 while vacationing in Aspen, Colo. -- isn't really dead, either.<br><br>How do I know? Why else would a federal judge decide last week to vacate Lay's conviction on fraud and conspiracy charges connected to the downfall of the once mighty energy trading company? Why would a judge make it more difficult for the government to seize $43.5 million from Lay's estate, money he stole from his company, and ensure the ill-gotten goods stay put. The answer is easy. So somebody, probably Lay, can use the money at a later date. The ruling was based on case law established in 2004 that allows convictions to be revoked if defendants die without an opportunity to appeal. The convenience makes it impossible for me to think otherwise.<br><br>It's a scheme that Hollywood dreams about. A wealthy but crooked industrialist pays big bucks to fake his death, which allows his conviction to be overturned on the basis of an obscure court case. All that remains is finding an indiscrete way to access the money.<br><br>Enron was once the seventh-largest company in the United States. However, the company imploded in December 2001 when accounting parlor tricks could no longer hide billions in debt or make failing ventures appear profitable.<br><br>When the company fell, thousands of jobs were lost, along with $60 billion in market value and more than $2 billion in pension plans. People's lives were ruined. Enron became synonymous with corporate fraud and scandal, a catalyst for similar corporate investigations and reams of new legislation and policies designed to prevent similar occurrences in other companies.<br><br>But Lay had socked away millions of dollars in protected investments. In early 2000, according to published reports, he and his wife bought about $4 million worth of variable annuities that guaranteed an annual income of about $900,000, starting next year. In Texas, the proceeds from annuity contracts are untouchable by creditors' and bankruptcy demands unless fraudulent intent can be proved. Lay's conviction did just that, but the judge's decision made it all go away and locked the money up even tighter.<br><br>With the money now safe and the annuities ready to kick in, my theory suggests that Lay has had plastic surgery to alter his appearance. Money can buy anything, including a new identity. And come February, his annuity payments will allow a continuation of the lifestyle to which he's became accustomed.<br><br>He wouldn't be the first to come up with the plastic surgery idea. In 1997, Amado Carrillo-Fuentes, wanted by American and Mexican drug agents, died on the operating table while undergoing plastic surgery and liposuction to change his appearance. Four suspects in the 1989 assassination of Colombian presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan reportedly escaped detection by having plastic surgery.<br><br>I admit my spin on the events is a stretch. But is it any less believable than the ruling itself, which in effect clears Lay's name but does nothing for the victims of his fraud?<br><br>G. Jeffrey Aaron is the business writer for the Star-Gazette. His column about business happenings and issues appears weekly on the Sunday business page. To suggest a column topic or story idea, call him at 607/271-8288 or e-mail him at jaaron@stargazette.com. <hr></blockquote><!--EZCODE QUOTE END--><br><br><br>==================<br><br>I wouldn't put anything past Bush...Kenny Boy was one of his best friends.<br><br>gc <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe

Postby greencrow0 » Tue Oct 24, 2006 11:10 am

Here's the link:<br><br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.stargazettenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061022/COLUMNIST01/610220309">www.stargazettenews.com/a.../610220309</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br><br>gc <p></p><i></i>
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Skilling must be feeling really bummed out

Postby Asta » Tue Oct 24, 2006 11:39 am

sentenced to 24 years. Right now he is under house arrest.<br><br>You suppose he'll meet with a happy accident and receive a Get out of Jail Free card or does he not have the kind of connections Kenny has?<br><br>Nothing would surprise me either.<br> <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Skilling must be feeling really bummed out

Postby postrchild » Tue Oct 24, 2006 11:57 am

Been saying this since the story about his death broke.......he isnt dead. No one with that much money coincidentally dies BEFORE hi court appearance. Something was fishy about the wife too......seemd like feigned sorrow to me.....ya know: "C'mon honey. All you have to do is cry a little, and my friends will take care of the rest. We'll be sippin mie-ties in Aruba before you know it!" I mean if a multi billion dollar loss to a HUGE energy company can be covered up for a few years then a faked death is nooooooo problem.<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START ;) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/wink.gif ALT=";)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Skilling must be feeling really bummed out

Postby KoolMcKool » Tue Oct 24, 2006 12:37 pm

I don't think Skilling has the connections. He's not part of "the club" - he was just the deeply crooked, arrogant, alpha-male that Kenny Boy hired to make him a billionaire. Now that Kenny Boy has gotten away with his money, Skilling is going to take the fall.<br>See The Smartest Guys in the Room to get a sense of what Skilling is all about. He's a self-made ubermensch master-of-the-universe who lives to manipulate others do exactly what he wants them to.<br>Kenny Boy is a member of the old boys club - something Skilling could aspire to but never achieve. He wasn't "to the manor born" as they say. <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Skilling must be feeling really bummed out

Postby postrchild » Tue Oct 24, 2006 1:44 pm

Yes it shows the difference in Masonic Degrees too......only the 33rd gets the pardon. <p></p><i></i>
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Kenny Boy Lay -- Probably IMHO

Postby ewastud » Wed Oct 25, 2006 1:39 am

A few other interesting facts about the funeral intrigued me: The press was barred from funeral services according to news reports and Lay's supposedly dead body was "cremated." How convenient that there is no body which might be exhumed by court order at some future date if someone should bring up their doubts about Lay's death. Who has really claimed to have seen Lay's corpse? Outside of Lay's physician in Aspen, and I have not heard or read of anyone. Can anyone out there provide any more information on that issue?<br><br>In Honolulu a few years ago there was a case of a crooked accountant who attempted to fake his death in an automobile accident near a beach. A late model BMW got smashed up and the supposed victim's body could not be found, presumably thrown from the car and drowned. Something seemed "fishy" and the accountant was caught on a commercial flight out of Hawaii later that day. The accountant had only embezzled a mere $50k (hardly seemed worth the smashed BMW, but that might have been bought on credit), and he almost got away with it. <br><br>If some amateurish crook-bookkeeper could almost pull off such a faked death, how much easier for someone like Lay to succeed at the same. After all, Lay is obviously well connected to the Bush crime family and their vast spook network. <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Kenny Boy Lay -- Probably IMHO

Postby robertdreed » Wed Oct 25, 2006 9:08 am

"Why else would a federal judge decide last week to vacate Lay's conviction on fraud and conspiracy charges connected to the downfall of the once mighty energy trading company?"<br><br>According to what I heard on NPR- because by law, he has to.<br><br>I think it's possible that Ken Lay faked his death. But it's very difficult to completely disappear and begin a new life, with no ties from the past. Very tough psychologically. So anyone interested in following up on that idea would be best off tracking the movements of his immediate family. Although if Kenny boy is still around, they aren't likely to make any moves for a reunion for perhaps 1-3 years. <br><br> <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Kenny Boy Lay -- Probably IMHO

Postby Gouda » Wed Oct 25, 2006 9:21 am

Psychologically tougher, though, to see your immense plunderings confiscated. Tougher to go from aspen retreats and yachts to a confined space behind walls where you are forced to go cold turkey from a wealth addiction. <br><br>Tracking the physical (and financial) movements of the family would indeed be a good idea. Any Bounty Hunters for Justice out there? <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe

Postby isachar » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:29 pm

based solely on the circumstances and people involved, I'd give it a better than even chance that he got a kick out of reading his own obits.<br><br>Paraguay is nice this time of year. <p></p><i></i>
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Re: Kenneth Lay alive? Maybe

Postby stickdog99 » Thu Oct 26, 2006 5:13 pm

I'd lay odds on it. <p></p><i></i>
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The party goes on...

Postby darkbeforedawn » Thu Oct 26, 2006 10:40 pm

Me too. Kenny boy is probably in some palace deep in Russia partying with the real Saddam Hussein and Bin Laden. Party will soon be adjourned to new digs in Paraquay with the newly "dead" Cheney who will soon "die" quickly and be cremated after getting blamed for 9-11. All of his stocks will already be owned by his children... <p></p><i></i>
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