Ex-Merrill executives face retrial

Three former Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. executives will be retried for fraud and conspiracy regarding their involvement with a phony deal made in conjunction with Houston-based Enron Corp., according to the Associated Press.
In 2004, James A. Brown, Daniel Bayly and Robert S. Furst were convicted of conspiracy and wire fraud for helping push through Enron’s sham sale of three power barges off the coast of Nigeria to the brokerage in 1999.
Many of the charges against those men were overturned last year (InvestmentNews, August 2) .
Jurors also convicted William Fuhs, a fourth Merrill Lynch executive and Dan Boyle, a former Enron finance executive.
Mr. Fuhs had his convictions thrown out due to a lack of evidence and he cannot be retried.
The jury acquitted in-house Enron accountant Sheila Kahanek.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold Spencer said prosecutors were still open to some sort of plea deal.
Merrill Lynch is based in New York.