Tyco jurors ask for review of ex-CFO's testimony

NEW YORK — Jurors in the trial of two ex-Tyco International executives accused of looting the company of $600 million asked the judge on Wednesday to review the former chief financial officer's testimony about bonuses, along with documents on the payouts.

Those bonuses, paid to ex-Tyco CFO Mark Swartz and ex-chief executive L. Dennis Kozlowski, total $84 million.

Swartz and Kozlowski are accused in their grand-larceny trial of taking unauthorized bonuses and abusing company loan programs.

Swartz testified during the nearly six-month trial that he did not do anything he believed was illegal. He said he and Kozlowski received bonuses and had their loans forgiven at many informal company board meetings at which no minutes were recorded.

The judge said it would take time to gather the readback materials, and he sent the jurors home. Deliberations were to resume this morning.

The jurors, who received the case last week, started their fifth day of deliberations Wednesday morning mulling evidence about a $20 million finder's fee paid to a company board member and the conglomerate's New York and Florida relocation plans. The panel had requested the material Tuesday.

The finder's fee and the bonuses are related to one of the top charges, grand larceny, against Swartz and Kozlowski.

Frank E. Walsh Jr. convinced his fellow Tyco board members to approve a proposal, championed by Kozlowski, for acquiring a company called CIT. After initially resisting, Kozlowski arranged payment of the $20 million finder's fee demanded by Walsh, testimony showed.

The board later demanded that Walsh return the money. He refused.

He later was prosecuted, and that investigation led to the trial of Kozlowski and Swartz.

Two lesser counts being reviewed by the jury involved the alleged alteration of the company's New York and Florida relocation plans. Swartz allegedly added benefits to the plans, unbeknownst to the board, that favored both defendants.

Swartz and Kozlowski are charged with 32 counts of grand larceny, falsifying business records and violating state business laws. They each could face up to 30 years in prison if convicted.