Enron’s Architect of Destruction Walks Free After 12-Year Span

Jeffrey Skilling spent more time behind bars than working at Enron Corp., the once-mighty energy giant he helped turn to ashes.

Skilling was released from federal custody Feb. 21 after serving 12 years and two months for the fraud, conspiracy and insider trading that kicked off what at the time was the biggest corporate bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Jeffrey Skilling outside court in Houston, Texas on April 18, 2006.

Photographer: Carlos Javier Sanchez/Bloomberg

During his 11-year odyssey at Enron, Skilling and sidekicks such as Andrew Fastow assembled obscure financial instruments with names like Talon and JEDI that became ticking time bombs beneath the corporation’s financial superstructure. After his elevation to CEO in early 2001, ...