Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay took the witness stand today in his fraud and conspiracy trial and sternly denied he had broken the law.

Fair or not, Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling are used to being called crooks and liars in the aftermath of the scandal-ridden implosion of the company they once ran. What counts is whether a dozen people chosen as jurors in their fraud and conspiracy case agree.

Former Enron chief executive Kenneth Lay was involved in a wide-ranging scheme to deceive the public, company shareholders and government regulators about the energy company that he founded before its collapse in 2001, according to an 11-count indictment today.

Andrew Fastow, the chief architect of the shady deals that brought down Enron, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy in a deal that could take prosecutors to the top of the corporate ladder at the scandal-ridden company.

Andrew Fastow, the chief architect of the shady deals that brought down Enron, pleaded guilty today to two counts of conspiracy in a deal that could take prosecutors to the top of the corporate ladder at the scandal-ridden company.

THE Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, began a visit to Rome yesterday in which he was due to meet Pope John Paul II for the first time.