Washington: Former chairman and chief executive officer of Enron, Kenneth Lay, today (July 8, 2004) surrendered to the FBI in Houston and was immediately taken, with his hands cuffed behind his back, to court to face criminal charges stemming from the 2001 collapse of the energy company he founded.

As he arrived at the FBI headquarters in Houston, he told a throng of reporters there, "Nice of you all to show up this morning".

Lay was accompanied by a pastor. He emerged from a sports utility vehicle driven by his wife, Linda, and walked into Houston's FBI headquarters at dawn.

Enron's collapse in late 2001 cost investors billions of Dollars, put thousands of Enron employees out of work and wiped out retirement savings for many. The company, once admired, became a symbol of corporate greed and excess, and its fall was followed by a string of scandals at other firms.

Lay has denied wrongdoing and claims that the accounting fraud in the company was perpetrated by underlings without his knowledge.