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New York (Sept. 25, 2002) - Xerox Corp. may have settled its accounting case with the Securities and Exchange Commission for $10 million, but the Wall Street Journal reports that federal authorities are considering criminal charges related to the massive misstatements of earnings at the copier giant.The paper says that FBI agents have questioned James Bingham, a former assistant treasurer at Xerox, who claims that he was fired for trying to curb fraudulent accounting at the company. Bingham was a key player in the SEC’s civil case, which ended with the company restating earnings back to 1997, although Xerox neither admitted nor denied any wrongdoing.
Although the SEC has settled its case against Xerox, the Journal said it has informed -- via so-called Wells notices -- Xerox's former accountant, KPMG, plus a number of former and current KPMG and Xerox employees, that they could still face civil charges.
In a statement Monday night, Xerox confirmed that it is being investigated and said it will fully cooperate with the U.S. Attorney's office.
-- Electronic Accountant Newswire staff
