Low Man on the Totem Pole – How I Became a White Collar Criminal
When Helen Sharkey was hired as an accountant in 1996 by Dynegy, an up and coming energy trading company in Houston, she had no idea the job would ultimately lead to 28 days in a maximum-security federal prison…but that’s exactly what happened.
At the age of 28, Helen was the lowest-level employee on a $300 million structured finance transaction team called Project Alpha. Little did she know, Dynegy was following in the footsteps on Enron. Soon the Securities and Exchange Commission launched an investigation of Project Alpha, followed by criminal charges brought by the Justice Department against three employees, including Helen.
In August 2003, Helen pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.