Ken Lay has died

The Washington Post reports that Enron Founder Ken Lay Dead of Heart Attack:

"The recently convicted former Enron chairman Kenneth L. Lay, 64, died early today in Aspen, Colo., a family spokeswoman and the sheriff's office said. Lay, convicted of fraud and conspiracy for his part in the Houston-based energy company's collapse, had faced the possibility of life in prison at his sentencing scheduled for October.

Family spokeswoman Kelly Kimberly said Lay died of a heart attack. A statement from the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office said deputies and an ambulance were sent to Lay's vacation home in Old Snowmass near Aspen at 1:41 a.m. for 'a medical emergency.'
Kenneth L. Lay, the former Enron chairman who was convicted in May for his role in the accounting fraud that led to the energy giant's collapse in 2001, died of a sudden heart attack on July 5 while vacationing at his home in Aspen, Colo. He was 64.

'Mr. Lay was transported to Aspen Valley Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:11 a.m.,' the statement said. 'A coroner's autopsy is pending.' The statement said the autopsy results will be available later this week.

'The Lays have a very large family with whom they need to communicate, and out of respect for the family, we will release further details at a later time,' a statement from the Lay family said.

On Friday, federal prosecutors asked a judge to order Lay and former Enron executive Jeffrey K. Skilling to turn over $182.2 million in assets, arguing that their homes and other assets were acquired by fraud.

In May, a federal jury convicted Lay of each of the half-dozen counts with which he was charged and found his protege Skilling guilty of 19 more, pinning them with the responsibility for one of the era's biggest and most damaging business frauds. The two men were ordered to return to court for sentencing on Oct. 23."

Mr. Lay's crimes caused immense suffering to Enron's employees, stockholders and the nation as a whole. His legacy will be the equation of his company with unadulterated corruption.

I pray for his sake that he repented of his sins and received God's mercy through Christ our Lord. May his family find comfort in this distressing time.

May the victims of his crimes find the serenity in their hearts to forgive him. It's the only way they'll bring the tragedy of Enron to an end.