Biz fraud goes behind the curtain

You've read about Enron. You've read about Global Crossing and WorldCom. When it comes to corporate pillaging, however, Tyco may top all of them. And, like every other unprecedented story of the past two years, this one leads back to Palm Beach County.

Profiteering, when alleged in court documents, is impressive for the overall numbers. This month, a federal indictment charged former Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski and ex-Chief Financial Officer Mark Swartz with stealing $170 million from the conglomerate that has a large presence in Boca Raton. The indictment also charges them with getting another $430 million through fraudulent stock sales.

That would be $600 million in scammed income. As a high-ranking Securities and Exchange Commission official said, "This type of looting really hasn't been seen in our lifetime." But the degree of excess came out last week when David Boies, who was Al Gore's lawyer during the presidential election controversy, released the report he had prepared for Tyco that detailed how Mr. Kozlowski spent the money he allegedly stole from shareholders and employees.