Mr Fastow denies any wrongdoing

The wife of former Enron finance chief Andrew Fastow is among those charged in a fresh round of indictments stemming from the energy giant's collapse.

Lea Fastow is accused of conspiring, along with her husband, to skim profits from the company's wind farm operations and of failing to report the income to the US Internal Revenue Service.

Nine other Enron executives were also charged on Thursday by the US authorities.

The new charges were announced in three separate indictments, including one that adds 31 new charges against Andrew Fastow himself.

Insider trading

Mr Fastow has already entered not guilty pleas on 78 federal charges of money laundering, fraud, conspiracy and obstruction of justice.

Today's (Thursday) indictments are a significant milestone in our determined efforts to expose and punish the vast array of criminal conduct related to the collapse of Enron Corp Larry Thompson, assistant attorney general

The latest Fastow indictment brings the total number of charges against him to 109.

If found guilty, he could be sentenced to hundreds of years in prison and million dollar fines.

Mrs Fastow, a former Enron assistant treasurer, faces six counts, including money laundering conspiracy, filing false tax returns and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The charges against her will ratchett up the pressure on her husband, Houston lawyer and ex-US Federal prosecutor Christopher Bebbel told the BBC's World Business Report.

Enron treasurer Ben Glisan and former finance executive Dan Boyle have been charged with securities fraud, insider trading, falsification of accounting records and tax records.

While seven former member of Enron's failed broadband internet unit EBS have been charged with securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.

Significant milestone

The seven are accused of making false statements that portrayed EBS, which streamed video on demand, as successful.

In fact, prosecutors claim, the unit never made any money and was abandoned by Enron shortly before the company filed for bankruptcy.

Assistant attorney general Larry Thompson said: "Today's (Thursday) indictments are a significant milestone in our determined efforts to expose and punish the vast array of criminal conduct related to the collapse of Enron Corp.

"Taken together, these charges bring us closer a full accounting for the wide range on Enron-related crimes that the Enron Task Force is investigating."

Phantom profits

Andrew Fastow is the most senior former Enron executive to be targeted by the US authorities.

The former chief financial officer has been accused of devising a string schemes that produced phantom profits.

He is alleged to have skimmed off millions for himself, his family and his inner circle.

The Fastows worked at a Chicago bank before joining Enron in 1990.

Mrs Fastow was assistant treasurer when she left the company in 1997.

Enron collapsed at the end of 2001 with billions of dollars of debt, putting all 4,500 of its employees out of work.