Former top McAfee lawyer pleads not guilty

McAfee Inc.’s former top lawyer pleaded not guilty Thursday in federal court in San Francisco to charges of stock options tampering in an alleged attempt to enrich himself at the expense of the computer security software maker’s shareholders.

A federal grand jury indicted Kent Roberts on Tuesday, nine months after McAfee fired him as its general counsel for improper handling of stock options issued in 2000 when the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company was known as Network Associates.

The indictment includes seven criminal counts of fraud alleging that Roberts manipulated the values of his stock options to increase his potential windfall from the awards and then falsified records to cover up his misconduct.

Roberts, 50, of Dallas later misled the Securities and Exchange Commission and McAfee’s auditors about his misdeeds, the indictment says.

If convicted, Roberts faces as many as 20 years in prison and a $5-million fine. He also could lose his license to practice law in the two states where he is a registered attorney -- Texas and Missouri.

Defense lawyer Stephen Neal said he was looking forward to a trial, which he said would lead to his client’s acquittal.