Kenneth Lay, a former CEO of the US bankrupt energy giant Enron, has said the CFO Andrew Fastow was the only one to blame for Enron's fraud.
Speaking at a business luncheon in Houston a month before the start of his own trial, Mr Lay said he bitterly regretted trusting Mr Fastow.
Enron collapsed in 2001 after it tried to hide multi-billion dollar debts.
Fastow himself pleaded guilty to conspiracy and fraud last year, and is expected to testify against Mr Lay, who faces seven such criminal charges.
Mr Lay called for former employees to be brave and come to his defence.
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CFO Is The One To Blame: Enron Chief
Kenneth Lay, a former CEO of the US bankrupt energy giant Enron, has said his finance officer Andrew Fastow was the only to blame