Bankers lose Enron extradition appeal

LONDON, ENGLAND - Three former NatWest bankers lost an appeal against extradition to the United States over fraud charges related to collapsed U.S. energy firm Enron.

The judgement said there was no sufficient basis upon which the extradition request ought to have been refused on proportionality grounds.

The bankers - David Bermingham, Giles Darby and Gary Mulgrew - had appealed against Home Secretary Charles Clarke's decision to allow their extradition to face trial in the United States.

The trio also lost an appeal for the Serious Fraud Office to review their case.

The three, who worked for NatWest Bank, now part of Royal Bank of Scotland, are alleged to have conspired with Enron executives, including former Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow, over the sale of a stake in an Enron entity in 2000, which made them $7.3 million (4 million pounds).

The former bankers, who deny the fraud allegations, had insisted they should face trial in Britain. They also claim the U.S. government is only trying to extradite them to bolster its case against other Enron defendants.

Their case falls under UK legislation in force since January 2004 that was designed to speed up the transfer of suspected terrorists to the United States.

Under treaty, the United States is able to demand a Briton's extradition without having to provide any evidence, although Britain has to prove its case in a U.S. court to extradite U.S. citizens to the United Kingdom.

At a November appeal hearing in the case, Lord Justice John Laws and Justice Duncan Ouseley questioned why the U.S. government wanted to extradite the men when they are accused of defrauding a Royal Bank of Scotland unit, Greenwich NatWest, rather than Enron.

British business leaders have complained that the United States is abusing the treaty to target white-collar criminals.

A group of general counsels from the country's biggest 100 companies is set to raise the issue with the government in the near future, a person familiar with the group confirmed.

The once high-flying Enron filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2001, the biggest in U.S. history at that time.

The trial of former top Enron executives Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling began in Houston at the end of January. They are charged with fraud and conspiracy.

Fastow, former Enron chief financial officer, has pleaded guilty to two conspiracy counts and agreed to testify against his former bosses in exchange for a maximum 10-year prison sentence.