Kozlowski became the object of ridicule after it was revealed that the furnishings at his Manhattan apartment included a $6,000 shower curtain and other extravagances that brought the price of the place to more than $30 million. Why not? It wasn't his money.

Just how much of the assets will they be forced to return? Given the track record of government prosecutors, it will likely be fractions of the amount defrauded. Why should Kozlowski's estate benefit from ill gotten gains ? Perhaps prosecutors should learn to be more aggressive in going after assets much like their counterparts at the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). The IRS is notorious to trying to collect in full all past due amounts plus compounded interest starting from the time the incident first occurred. Why not place a lien on all assets and try to recoup the entire $600 million plus an additional $20 million in annual interest penalties from the time of the first infraction? In my opinion, it's the only logical option.

Updates after September 19, 2005:

Former Tyco CEO Dennis Kozlowski and former Tyco CFO Mark H. Swarz were each sentenced up to 25 years in prison. Both are eligible for parole after 8 years and 4 months.
 
© 2005 Nelson Chin.
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