Tyco CFO Committed No Crime, Jurors Told

The former finance chief of Tyco International Ltd. committed no crime and always believed that the money he received from the company was authorized, his lawyer said Monday in closing arguments.

Lawyer Charles Stillman also said Mark Swartz never acted to conceal his large company bonuses.

The district attorney “must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Mark intended to steal the money,” Stillman told jurors in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan. “They’ve proven no such thing.”

Swartz and former Tyco Chief Executive L. Dennis Kozlowski are accused of looting Tyco and investors of about $600 million by hiding unauthorized bonuses, secretly forgiving loans to themselves and pumping up Tyco stock with lies about company finances.

The pair’s second trial is wrapping up more than a year after their first trial ended in a mistrial when a juror reported receiving threats.

Stillman said a company plan instituted before Swartz was chief financial officer provided that bonuses would be paid based on Tyco’s financial performance -- and he said the company met its targets.

“Mark never received a penny more than was provided under his bonus formula,” Stillman said.

Stillman also said Swartz believed that he was carrying out the wishes of the board of directors’ compensation committee when he took a $12.5-million loan forgiveness in 1999 rather than a cash-and-stock bonus.

Closing arguments were expected to last four days.